Galería Contempo Announces John Ashley-Pryce Reception

Galería Contempo announces an opening reception featuring new works by John Ashley-Pryce, to take place this Friday, November 18, 6 – 10 pm. His work is photo realistic and depicts details of overlooked urban scenes reflected in the walls of mirror that line city streets. Signs and posters all appear in reverse in the reflected views. He paints with a realistic approach to images of interiors and exteriors that draw our attention to normally unnoticed details. Ashley-Pryce’s passion for the detail in design and his ability to see and paint what we would normally overlook as mundane gives us through his works a different perspective of ordinary.

Ashley-Pryce was born in England in 1946 but lived his childhood and working life in Vancouver, Canada. He spent his career as a Professional Commercial Interior Designer gathering details of his clients’ businesses in order to translate the information into very detailed and award winning offices, retail spaces, and showrooms.

He travelled to Europe and the United States many times and there always studied the architecture and details of the cities.  John says, “everything in our lives has been designed, the buildings, the roads, signs, store windows, everything.  I enjoy finding the interest in common designs that make the urban landscape.”

Basically a self taught artist he has been applying paint to canvas for more than 40 years and was inspired by photo realist artists like Richard Estes, Alex Colville and Mary Pratt.   John enjoys painting portraits and still life but it his interest in and love of architecture and design that emerges in his current paintings.

In 2005 John and his life partner and husband of 36 years, Doug Stimson, felt they wanted to spend winters in a warmer climate and Puerto Vallarta fit the bill perfectly.  They bought their first home in 2006 but carried on working in their interior design business in Vancouver until 2010 when they decided to retire and spend more time in Mexico.  They are now completing construction of their third house here.  The new house provides John with an ample studio where he now devotes himself full-time to painting.

When asked what drives him, he says, “Details, details of overlooked things in everyday urban life.  I look at how traffic signals are attached to utility poles, what holds trolley lines up, signs and their reflections in city windows”.

Galería Contempo is located in Emiliano Zapata on Basilio Badillo 252. For more information, please visit www.galeriacontempo.com.