James McQueen
Special Edition | 2024

James McQueen is a British artist who works between London and New York, and his technique involves layering the canvas with an abundant application of paint in many colours and shades. Once dry, he sands the work down so that a multitude of layers are visible in the finished piece. Finally, the surface is covered with lacquer to add extra richness and vibrancy.

Consequently, these paintings are as much about paint and colour as they are about the covers of the books. The visible layering of paint creates a sense of depth and dynamism which, combined with the complex interaction between colours, shares affinities with the Abstract Expressionists, particularly Mark Rothko. McQueen’s artistic methods include the use of spray paint which gives the pieces a contemporary, graffiti-influenced feel and urban edge.

McQueen’s love of vintage books which have been much-read and showing signs of wear has translated into his mixed media pieces influenced by classic paperbacks. “Everyone who owns it has put their little stamp on it, like a tea mark, pencil scribbles, or folded page corners,” he says. “I want to reimagine the dust jacket of a classic book, retro aesthetics with a provocative modern twist."

Featured Art (L-R): Shit Happens and Protect Me From What I Want. The Silkscreens are hand-signed by James McQueen.

Because of innovations in the early 19th century, including better printing technology and the ability to distribute books via the new railway system, UK publishers like Routledge & Sons and Ward & Lock began to produce paperback editions of existing books, and sell them through places like railway station bookshops.

In 1935, British publisher Allen Lane began the paperback revolution in the English-language book market by releasing ten reprint titles to launch the Penguin Books imprint. Penguin adopted many of the innovations of Germany’s Albatross Press who had begun these before World War II, including a conspicuous logo, using only type on the cover, and colour-coded covers for different genres. The first book on Penguin's 1935 list was Ariel, a fictionalised biography of the poet Shelley, by French author Andre Maurois.

Featured Art: Protect Me From What I Want. The Silkscreen is hand-signed by James McQueen.