LONDON.- Lazarides Rathbone announces a major exhibition of multifaceted paintings by British artist Ian Francis.

The Chosen Form of Your Destroyer is focused on a new series of mixed media works depicting the coexistence of beauty and destruction in modern society. The Bristol-based artist celebrates his third full-scale solo exhibition at Rathbone Place this year, once again transporting his viewers into other-worldly realms, littered with subconscious realities and blurred boundaries synonymous with his work to date.

The artist's cross-disciplinary approach weaves intricate layers of both painting and drawing to create distinctly ultra-modern works, providing a powerful dialogue between contemporary techniques and dystopian cinematic content. Francis utilises a high-contrast mixture of oil, ink, acrylic, graphite and charcoal to construct works that are both dramatically appealing and visually striking, whilst alluding to underlying notes of melancholy, alienation and social critique. The new series of paintings continue to examine reoccurring themes of constructed worlds, virtual relationships and shifting dimensions that underpin Francis' wider practice.

The Chosen Form of Your Destroyer presents a combination of figurative monochromatic paintings alongside larger compositions depicting fantastical narratives spiralling just out of our reach. Francis is fascinated with the moment of quiet fragility ahead of a majestic destruction, referencing the lack of individual choice and identity amid a much larger, uncontrollable force. Abstraction and figuration mutually support the artist's suggestion of a world view where violence and style intersect, balancing a careful mix of intimate moments and all-encompassing narratives. The forthcoming exhibition revisits Francis' interest in sensationalist media and human interaction within an ever-evolving contemporary landscape, capturing still-frames charged with conflict, passion and mystery.