Untold Stories | 2025

James McQueen

By rewriting the narrative, reclaiming the margins and stripping away what doesn’t belong, James McQueen examines what remains when we take control of the final draft and reject the expected. Cool, unapologetic and fiercely self-authored, this is storytelling on the artist’s terms. Anonymous as he may be, the voice is unmistakable.

Each piece plays on cultural tropes, the raw truth of reality and the fantasy of freedom, giving voice to boundaries that often go unspoken.

The artist’s affection for classic paperbacks – particularly those worn with love – resonates throughout the collection, interwoven with familiar motifs from contemporary art. From Damien Hirst’s clinical dots to Jackson Pollock’s chaotic gestures, each piece transforms a familiar aesthetic into a statement of resistance, self-definition or sharp humour.