ALASDAIR GRAY (SCOTTISH 1934-2019)
FAUST IN HIS STUDY (THE FAUST LEGEND) - 1958
Dyeline print, from lost original on tracing cloth, inscribed ‘Alasdair Gray to Mr George Campbell 1962’ 
the image 63cm x 63cm (24.75in x 24.75in)
Literature: Illustrated in A Life in Pictures, Alasdair Gray, p.70Gray’s ‘Faust in his Study’ is a work that showcases his witty and bold graphic style. The scene is a chaotic one, which finds its origins in the original painting by Rembrandt, c. 1652, of the same name. In Rembrandt’s work, a scholar is transfixed by an orb of light that holds a secret code. In Gray’s version, all the knowledge of life swirls around this incredibly detailed work, intertwining symbols of death, love and the human experience. Gray has said that the figure of Faust ‘is an idealised version of me, busily introspecting.’ As the original tracing cloth has been lost, only a few dyeline prints and photocopies of this work exist. However, as The Guardian proclaimed ‘A peculiarity of Gray’s graphic work is that it sometimes appears at its best in reproduction.’