TV Room V 1997

Editor: So, we're looking at Paul Winstanley's "TV Room V." There's no date, but it's a large-scale painting. It feels so cold and desolate. What do you see in this piece? Curator: It’s funny you say that. For me, it is an image of suspended time. The cool palette and the empty chairs create a sense of waiting, a shared, silent vigil in front of a flickering screen. It reminds me of waiting rooms, classrooms... Places of institutional viewing. Editor: Institutional viewing, I like that. So, is he commenting on our relationship with media? Curator: I think so. Winstanley captures that weird, detached feeling we get when passively consuming images. It's like we're all in this together, yet utterly alone. What do you make of the curtains? Editor: They look so heavy, like they are trying to block something out. Makes me think there's a world outside of the TV. Curator: Exactly. It’s a painting that leaves you with more questions than answers. A quiet, unsettling masterpiece. Editor: I’ll never look at a waiting room the same way again!