Tanya Ling

‘There’s a history of abstraction where application of paint gets a relatively smooth ride, occupying the surface without friction or resistance’ – Faith in Motion: Tanya Ling and her Line, Andrew Renton

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Tanya Ling creates paintings that move in folds and waves across the picture surface, appearing to be in constant motion. Working on both paper and latterly on canvas, Ling’s practice explores a hypnotic and distinctive pictural language. On paper, she uses a single colour, painting lines of richly saturated ink that undulate rhythmically across the picture surface. On canvas, she builds each composition with layers of colour and line, creating a rich tapestry of gestures that weave to fill the image. Pulsating with a chanelled energy, Ling’s work is spontaneous, intuitive, instinctive.

Tanya Ling (b. 1966, Calcutta, India) graduated from Central Saint Martins, London, in 1989. Post graduation, she worked as a designer in the Parisian fashion industry before returning to London in the early Nineties to set up a gallery, Bipasha Ghosh, with her husband William Ling. Following an exhibition of her own drawings, presented in the studio of Gavin Turk in 1996 and a commission from British Vogue, she became known as one of the world’s leading fashion illustrators. During the period she also designed and produced an eponymous ready-to-wear collection. The exhibition Lines (2014) with Alex Eagle marked her departure from fashion.

Most recently, her work has been exhibited at Studio Cromie in Grottaglie, Puglia (2024). Prior to this she showed with Ronchini, London (2024) and Harper’s, New York (2023), LA (2020) and East Hampton (2021). Other solo shows of note include Paul Stolper, London (2018/19) and The Mayor Gallery, London (2018). In 2011 over 50 of Ling’s works were acquired by the Victoria and Albert Museum Prints and Drawings Collection. In 2014 a collection of paintings and sculptures were acquired by Damien Hirst for his collection from which works by Ling were included in exhibitions Simulation/Skin (2017) and Reason Gives on Answers (2019) both at Newport Street Gallery, London. Ling lives and works in London.