The divorce of Fanny and Mike

Studio17 proudly presents Katie Brookes solo exhibition «The divorce of Fanny and Mike». In the words of the artist:

This group of paintings are a response to Britain leaving the European Union. Fanny in latin is the name for a female meaning ‘from France’ and Mike/Michael in latin is a male name for an angel – Britain was once, in Latin, called the Land of Angels – so the couple and the two sides of the channel break apart in the title for this show which opens on the ‘proposed’ divorce date, the 29th of March 2019.

Having lived on both sides of the channel, these paintings are a response to the stereotypical ‘britishness’ that led to the saddening vote of 2016. The paintings bring together my observations of the events leading up to and since the vote and bring together references from both the United kingdom and Belgium.

Katie Brookes was born near Manchester in 1987, grew up in Belgium and now lives in Brighton, UK. Katie studied at University of the Arts London, Camberwell from 2006 to 2010, the Royal Drawing School from 2012 to 2013 and Turps Art school from 2015 to 2017. Her work has been exhibited throughout the UK and internationally, including solo exhibitions at Art Work Space London and the Chopping Block Gallery London and group shows at Christies London, Art Bermondsey project space and the Turps Gallery. Alongside her practice as a painter Katie is a tutor and has taught at institutions such as the National Gallery and the Royal Academy as a Royal Drawing School tutor.