Phil Shaw
Professor Phil Shaw is a ground-breaking British digital-printmaker, who creates hyper-real images of great formal elegance and conceptual richness. His distinctive ‘bookshelf’ prints interrogate the changing place of the printed word in a digital age, and the transfer of meaning through inter-textuality. Depicting books arranged on shelves, their titles merge and melt, forming unexpected connections and new dynamics. These are images to explore and intrigue; they are clever, funny, unsettling, and beautiful.
Awarded his Doctorate in ink technology, Shaw uses a specialized eight-colour printing process on fine-grade Hahnemuhle paper. He was the former Professor of Printmaking at the University of Middlesex, where he taught from 1980.
Shaw's work stems from what he describes as:
'Questions relating to what we believe, what we think we believe and what we are told to believe. Probably as a result of a strict fundamentalist upbringing, I have always been troubled by the possibility that things may not be what they appear to be and certainly not what they are said to be. As a result, I see most beliefs (even scientific ones) as a form of dogma. And I enjoy poking fun at dogma - wherever it lurks. The book titles are all absolutely genuine (with the exception of the Fiction and Friction series). I wouldn't have done the prints otherwise. They all appear in the British Library Catalogue.'
In 2004, one of these works was chosen as ‘Print of the Year’ by the Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers. Shaw regularly exhibits at the Royal Academy and his work is included in the UK Government Art Collection and the Vulcan Collection.
Shaw was also commissioned by David Cameron to create the thought-provoking print that was presented to world leaders at the G8 Summit in Northern Ireland in 2013, which now forms part of the National Art Collection. He was featured on the front of The Times’ Arts pages, as the ‘Critics’ Pick’ during London Art Week, and his Big Fiction was the cover image of the South China Morning Post during Art Basel Hong Kong 2015, following his exhibition at Art Central Hong Kong.
To purchase a copy of Phil Shaw's book, Shelf Obsession, contact info@rebeccahossack.com
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Once Upon a Time (detail), 2017
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The Truth in Black and White with Some Grey Areas 3, 2016
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For Piet's Sake II, 2014
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Londonensi Subterraneis, 2012
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Installation Shot
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Big Fiction, 2014
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Install shot
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You Can't Judge a Book, 2022
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The Life Aquatic, 2017
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Love at First Sight, 2019
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Science Fiction, 2018
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London, New York, Paris, Moscow II, 2019
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Londonensi Subterraneis: Elizabeth Linea, 2022
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All That Glisters, 2017
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Londonensi Subterraneis: Victoria Linea , 2024
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Climate Change, 2022
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Fractured Fairytales, 2023
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The Divine Comedy, 2022
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Once Upon a Time
Phil Shaw 1 - 25 January 2020 LondonInside an exhibition of works by artist Phil Shaw, to coincide with his Once Upon a Time box-set, at the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery in London.Read more -
The Reader
Phil Shaw 8 - 27 January 2018 LondonInside an exhibition of bookshelf prints from ground-breaking British digital-printmaker Phil Shaw's Shelf Obsession collection at the Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery in London in 2018.Read more -
Shelf Obsession
Phil Shaw 26 September - 28 October 2017 LondonDr Phil Shaw is a ground-breaking British digital-printmaker, who creates hyper-real images of great formal elegance and conceptual richness. His distinctive bookshelf prints interrogate the changing place of the printed...Read more -
Let Me Out I Haven't Finished Yet
Phil Shaw 25 May - 6 July 2014Phil Shaw's retrospective show at The Artworks 1830 Gallery is his first solo show in his home county of Yorkshire for 40 years. The gallery is set in the glorious...Read more -
Christmas Gift Ideas
Group Show 17 - 24 December 2013 LondonA specially selected range of artworks, ideal for those for whom only a one-of-a-kind present will do. Including specially comissioned pieces by Rebecca Jewell, Holly Frean and Karen Nicol, all...Read more -
Storytelling
Ross Bonfanti and Phil Shaw, NYC 15 December 2013 - 12 January 2014Rebecca Hossack Gallery is proud to present 'Storytelling,' an exhibition featuring works by Ross Bonfanti and Phil Shaw. In place of a formal opening, Rebecca Hossack Gallery is partnering up...Read more -
Mott Street in July
Group Show, NYC 7 - 31 July 2013During the month of July, RHG NYC will be exhibiting our annual summer group show inspired by the famously evocative Rodgers and Hart song 'Manhattan'. We will be showcasing pieces...Read more
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Partnership with My Bloomsbury Hotel
Partnership 1 September 2021The Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery is pleased to announce our new partnership with My Bloomsbury. A reinvented modern classic in the heart of London’s Bloomsbury. The partnership draws on the natural synergy of the two institutions, highlighting the rich artistic history of the area.Read more -
Phil Shaw: Shelf Isolation
News 17 April 2020Many artists have responded creatively to the current coronavirus pandemic, but perhaps none with the wit, insight and brilliance of Phil Shaw. His latest work...Read more
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Phil Shaw's Work: Humour as a Serious Matter
Middlesex University, 1 May 2010 -
A Diplomatic Incident
Daily Mail, 23 June 2013 -
A Good Read
In New York, 1 December 2013 -
David Farrer's Scale And Silver 25th Anniversary Exhibition
One Stop Arts, 8 December 2013 -
Battle of the Sexes
Works and Days Quarterly, 10 December 2013 -
Lifestyle: Rebecca Hossack
House & Garden, 1 January 2014 -
An Eye for the Surreal
Yorkshire Post, 30 May 2014 -
Phil Shaw, Multi-talented Artist and Musician
Huddersfield Examiner, 27 June 2014 -
Best in Show: Phil Shaw
Hedge Magazine, 26 August 2014 -
Phil Shaw
The Lady, 7 October 2014 -
How to Grab a Bargain
The Times, 24 October 2014 -
Art at the Crossroad
South China Morning Post, 14 March 2015 -
Art & Antiques
Notting Hill Holland Park, 1 June 2015 -
Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery: Phil Shaw
Ultra Vie, 20 May 2016 -
Happy Gallerists at Seattle Art Fair
The Seattle Times, 6 August 2016 -
What is an Antique?
Evening Standard, 7 September 2016 -
Photo London 2017: Read Between the Lines
West London Today , 18 May 2017 -
Photography Is...
Elephant, 18 May 2017 -
Phil Shaw at iPhoto
iPhoto Central , 20 June 2017 -
Phil Shaw
Wall Street International, 14 September 2017 -
Phil Shaw: Reality Imitated on the Bookshelf
Esse, 10 December 2017 -
Exposed; London Art Fair
Cent Magazine, 31 January 2018 -
CF's Gallery Guide to Marylebone and Fitzrovia
Citizen Femme, 8 March 2018 -
Phil Shaw's Shelf Obsession at Skibo Gallery
Skibo, 1 May 2018 -
The Best of Photo London
Culture Whisper, 16 May 2018 -
Photo London Top 5
FAD Magazine, 17 May 2018 -
Phil Shaw Interiors
Hola!, 2 January 2019 -
The Clue is in the Title
Daily Mail, 14 April 2020 -
Bookshelf Art Tells a Story For Our Time
The Times, 23 April 2020