drawing
- Museum number
- 2004,0601.33
- Description
-
Mickey Mouse; head and shoulders of thick-set bald man smoking in semi profile, green ground. 1994
Pastel on brown laid paper
- Production date
- 1994
- Dimensions
-
Height: 254 millimetres
-
Width: 252 millimetres
- $Inscriptions
-
- Curator's comments
- Text from 'Living with art: The Alexander Walker collection' (British Museum Press, 2020):
A dramatically cropped head and shoulders of a bald man with large ears and heavy features, a cigarette in his mouth, set against a lime-green background. The drawing is a study for Richardson’s larger painting 'Oostenders' (1994), in which the figure is depicted in conversation with two men, one of whom is seated in classic Mercedes car. The term ‘Mickey Mouse’, used by the artist and his friends to refer to someone ‘being a bit of a joke or cheap’, is used ironically here for the tough, serious-looking man (email from Ray Richardson to the author, 7 August 2019).
Richardson was born in Woolwich, south-east London and has continued to live and work in the area. He has depicted the world around him and the characters in it for as long as he can remember. The model for this drawing was someone that he played football with. Richardson’s images, which often feature shadowy figures and imply mysterious narratives, reflect his interest in the cinema, particularly ‘B’ movies and film noir.
- Location
- Not on display
- Acquisition date
- 2004
- Acquisition notes
- Purchased by Alexander Walker from Beaux Arts, London on 26/5/94 for £400
- Department
- Prints and Drawings
- Registration number
- 2004,0601.33