Water, Colour

Gallerist Sean Kelly introduced Scottish painter Callum Innes and Irish author Colm Tóibín in New York in February 2010. Tóibín had been a long time admirer of Innes' serene abstractions and had even acquired one of his watercolors, and he quizzed the painter at length about his work and methods during this initial meeting. Kelly asked Tóibín if he would like to write on Innes, and when the acclaimed novelist--who has often written on art--readily consented, Innes decided to embark on a series of new watercolors for the occasion. He got to work immediately upon his return to Edinburgh, and between February and July of that year he produced 64 watercolors. In each of these watercolours, Innes employed two colours, wet on wet, leading to beautiful textured layering effects unlike anything in his oeuvre to date. Tóibín, meanwhile, had completed the short story “water|colour,” written specifically for Innes' work, which in turn prompted an incredible, concentrated, three-month burst of creativity from the painter, and a further 160 watercolours. Kelly and Innes edited these down to the 101 works that are reproduced in full colour in this magnificent volume, alongside Tóibín's short story.