Skinheads 1969 Acrylic and oil on canvas 153x102cms
Recently my son asked me if I still had this painting. Ah, I said Skinheads 1969, I think it is stored in the attic with other early work. He said he didn’t think it could be 1969 as that would be too early for skinheads. I found the painting in a dusty roll in the attic, but it had neither title nor date, so I referred to Google and found this:
Skinheads in London 1969
“A skinhead is a member of a subculture that originated among working class youths in the United Kingdom in the 1960s, and then spread to other parts of the world. Named for their close-cropped or shaven heads, the first skinheads were greatly influenced by West Indian (specifically Jamaican) rude boys and British mods, in terms of fashion, music and lifestyle. Originally, the skinhead subculture was primarily based on those elements, not politics or race. Since then, however, attitudes toward race and politics have become factors by which some skinheads align themselves. The political spectrum within the skinhead scene ranges from the far right to the far left, although many skinheads are apolitical. Fashion-wise, skinheads range from a clean-cut 1960s mod-influenced style to less-strict punk- and hardcore-influenced styles.”
Skinheads 1969 was painted during my first year as a postgraduate student at the Royal Academy Schools in London, and was in marked contrast to the work that had gained me my place at the RA Schools; a series of small traditional en plein air landscapes of Norfolk and Wales. These paintings in both subject and style may have been in tune with the ethos of the schools at the time, as well as with much work hanging upstairs in the famous galleries, but with the clamour and excitement of swinging sixties London outside I remember being at a complete loss over what to paint.
I started with a deliberately naïve drawing of imaginary skinheads that was in part influenced by Peter Blake’s 1961 Self Portrait with Badges. Then in complete contrast to all my earlier work I transferred it to a large canvas and started painting the near life size figures in acrylics.
I remember working on this painting when, on Thursday January 30 1969, the quiet of the studios in Burlington Gardens was suddenly shattered by the most incredibly loud pop music. Drawn by this sound the schools emptied into the street which was rapidly filling with people all looking up at the roof of the Apple building at 1 Saville Row. There the Beatles could be seen performing with a bearded Paul Macartney singing Get Back at a volume that was thrillingly loud. That part of London came to a standstill as shivering crowds stood with upturned heads in stunned awe. We were there for some considerable time, unaware that we were being treated to the last live Beatles concert, until the police brought it to an end.
After re-stretching the canvas and making some minor repairs Skinheads 1969 was shown for the first time in 40 years at the Friends and Founders exhibition at the Bigger Picture Gallery, London in September 2010