Angel by Jack Vettriano | Signed Limited Edition Print
Most of Jack Vettriano's paintings take place behind closed doors: hotel rooms, bars, dance halls and dimly lit apartments. Angel is one of the rare ones set out on the street, at the entrance to a London Underground station, and it has all the atmosphere of a scene from a 1940s film.
What the painting shows
Above the scene hangs the familiar red Underground roundel, its blue bar reading Angel, the name of the station in Islington, north London. In front of it stands a man in a grey fedora and long overcoat, a coat folded over his arm, looking out of the picture rather than at anyone in it. Behind him, framed in the lit archway of the station, a woman in a dark coat and white collar waits on the steps.
Are they together? Is he arriving or leaving? Is the woman the "angel" of the title, or is the title simply the name on the sign? Vettriano never tells us. As so often in his work, the painting is built around a meeting that might or might not happen, and the viewer is left to write the rest of the story.
A painting from his early career
Angel is an oil on canvas measuring 32 x 28 inches. It was shown in God's Children, the Jack Vettriano exhibition held from 2 to 11 October 1992, where it was catalogue number one. That was the same year he painted The Singing Butler, and a period when his reputation was growing fast. The original painting has since been sold and is no longer available, which makes the signed print the way to own the image today.
If you are interested in how his career unfolded from those early shows, our overview of Jack Vettriano's exhibitions follows it from the late 1980s onwards.
About this edition
Signed limited edition print
Edition of 100, plus 10 Artist's Proofs
Signed and numbered by Jack Vettriano
Image size 39 x 34cm, mounted to 61.5 x 55cm
Supplied with a certificate of authenticity
An edition of 100 is small by Vettriano's standards (many of his giclée editions run to 250 or 350), which is worth bearing in mind if rarity matters to you. Our guide to how much Vettriano prints are worth explains why edition size matters.
Where it works best
The muted greys and browns, lifted by the red of the roundel, make Angel a calm, atmospheric picture rather than a loud one. It suits a hallway, study or living room, and it makes a natural gift for anyone with a connection to London or a love of film noir.
Buying with confidence
As an official Jack Vettriano stockist, we supply every print with a certificate of authenticity and fully insured UK delivery, and we can quote for international delivery on request.
View Angel here: Angel
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