Lindsey Bull
Quiet Magic

William Hine is pleased to present Quiet Magic, a solo exhibition by British painter Lindsey Bull on view from 9 April to 23 May, 2026.

Over the past decade, Bull has developed a distinctive visual language centred around figuration, drawing variously upon images of high fashion, countercultural movements, subculture, and an interest in the occult, often explored through elaborate costume and the dramatic use of colour and light that typify her compositions. In her most recent work, female figures are captured in transitional states; moments in the lead up to or aftermath of performance, where ritual and celebration give way to quiet contemplation. These fleeting moments that show people dressing, rehearsing and performing are chosen as much for the potency of their outward expressiveness as for the interior psychological states they offer. Inhabiting spaces that feel both theatrical and intimate, her characters are suspended between public observation and personal introspection.

In Quiet Magic, figures drift through space as though caught off-guard, between gestures—walking, resting, turning to look. They appear lost in thought yet also entirely present, performers who are simultaneously audience to their own interior worlds. In this way, the paintings capture everyday human polarities that recur throughout her practice: loneliness and confidence, fragility and strength, solitude and togetherness. Clothing and costume come to play a central role in revealing these layered identities. Elaborate garments—floor-length gowns, flowing dresses, textured fabrics—become both armour and stage costume, suggesting roles that can be inhabited or shed.

→ Download Press Release

About the artist:

Lindsey Bull (b.1979, Hereford, UK) lives and works in Manchester, UK. Bull received an MA in Fine Art from the Chelsea College of Art and Design (2009) and a BA in Fine Art from the Manchester School of Art (2001). In 2020 Bull was shortlisted for the John Moores Painting Prize and has been a recipient of prizes including the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grant (2017) and the Liverpool Biennial Associate Artist Award (2016).

Recent residencies include the Palazzo Monti Residency, Brescia, Italy (2024) and the Atlantic Centre for the Arts Residency, Florida, USA (2018). Bull’s work was recently featured in the survey publication The Anomie Review of Contemporary British Painting 3 [Anomie Publishing, 2024] and included in the first volume of the Anomie Review of Contemporary British Painting [Anomie Publishing, 2018].

Bull's work is held in the collections of the Manchester Art Gallery (UK); Kolon Collection (South Korea); Red Mansion Foundation (UK) and Soho House Collection (UK).

Artworks

Lindsey Bull, Green Coat, 2025, oil on canvas, 170 × 114 cm

Enquire