The Jerwood Gallery in Hastings has taken an unusual step in staging a major retrospective of John Bratby, regarded as an enfant terrible in the 1950s and 60s UK art scene.Titled “Everything But the Kitchen Sink: Including the Kitchen Sink,” the exhibition called for private collectors of Bratby’s works to bring in their prized pieces, allowing the public to shape the content of the retrospective.Bratby is thought to have painted over 1,500 works in his lifetime, featuring many celebrities of the mid-20th Century including three of Sir Paul McCartney. Two of them, from collectors in London and Plymouth, are reunited for the exhibition which runs January 30 through April 17, 2016. Both oil paintings were created in 1967, it is the first time they have been shown together. The whereabouts of the third remains unknown, though it is believed McCartney himself may own it.According to Jerwood Gallery, submissions of privately-owned works were overwhelming, including personal recollections, letters and photos from the public. Some 300 works were submitted.Born in 1928, Bratby adopted Hastings as his hometown in the 1970s, where he passed away shortly after his 64th birthday in 1992. He was considered a “radical realist” and painted the likes of Michael Palin, Arthur Askey and Claire Rayner.Actor and comedian Palin sat for Bratby in 1981, and personally contributed portraits to the exhibition. “He wrote to me and said ‘Come down to Hastings one day - it will only take an afternoon’. He worked very solidly for about three-and-a -half hours then he said, ‘The work is done - it's yours for £700.’ I didn't like it at all but I paid the money. I really like it now and actually I am rather fond of his work.”“John Bratby: Everything But the Kitchen Sink Including the Kitchen Sink” also showcases Bratby’s still lifes, pop art and a range of domestic scenes.
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