Issy Wood, Go Daddy! (Out to get you), 2022. Oil on linen, 55 7/8 × 40 1/8 × 2 inches (141.9 × 101.9 × 5.1 cm). Promised gift of an anonymous donor. © Issy Wood
London-based Issy Wood straddles realism and surrealism in her paintings of everyday objects with tightly cropped compositions and evocative details. She is also an electronic-pop musician, featuring her own paintings on the covers of her EPs and singles, as well as her debut album My Body Your Choice (2022). In Go Daddy! (Out to get you), Wood paints two bucket seats of a car’s interior from a peculiar angle. The car interior is a recurring subject in Wood’s paintings. She considers it a masculine space, presented through advertising as a kind of escape and frequently populated by men. Painted with great detail, this interior is cast with an eerie green color that, when combined with the perspective, renders the mundane scene as surprising and perhaps disquieting. Except for a glint of white light, Wood eliminates any context, segregating the scene from the outside world and highlighting it as a private space. This interplay between a common object and a sinister psychology recurs in Wood’s work, producing a sense of detachment and humor. Her distinctive treatment of banal subjects as well as her painting on clothing and furniture has distinguished her work in the field of contemporary painting, confirming her as part of the conversation around reinvigorating the traditions of portraiture and still life.