RB Kitaj. Making it New, Now: Michael Ajerman in conversation with Tracy Bartley

Autumn Term, sees the return of the Royal Drawing School series of Creative Conversations; online dialogues between artists, curators and writers. Curated by Dr Claudia Tobin, lectures are held Wednesday evenings live on Zoom.

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Michael Ajerman, 'Complimentary', 2020-2022, Oil on board, 23 x 30 cm 
© Michael Ajerman. 
Courtesy of the artist

An open conversation on R.B. Kitaj between Tracy Bartley and Michael Ajerman. Bartley was Kitaj's assistant for over a decade in his final years in Los Angeles and is now Director of the R.B. Kitaj Estate and R.B. Kitaj Studio Project, whilst Ajerman has been affected by Kitaj's work and writing since he was a student. The pair will discuss the artist's life and oeuvre, with aspects that they personally feel radiates in this present day and climate. 

Michael Ajerman studied at the Corcoran School of Art, the New York Studio School, and the Yale Summer School at Norfolk. In 2003 he completed his Masters Degree at the Slade School of Art and received the British Institute Award from the Royal Academy.  

Ajerman has consistently exhibited internationally in both solo and group shows. In 2018 he was awarded UCLA’s Kitaj Research Fellowship, where his scholarly and archival investigation of artists R.B. Kitaj and Walter Sickert culminated in the lecture, From Tipperary to Westwood. During the 2020 pandemic, Ajerman created the London Lockdown Lecture Series, an independent series of online art lectures.   

Ajerman’s oil paintings depict private moments of quiet domesticity and inner landscapes. His depiction of objects and bodies in flux employ a gestural style focused on colour and brushwork. Frequently populated by subjects real and fictional, his paintings are both intimate and expressive, funny and sinister, luscious and unexpected.  

Tracy Bartley studied painting and art conservation, receiving a Master of Art Conservation degree from Queen’s University in 1995. She has worked in Los Angeles as a project coordinator at the Getty Conservation Institute as well as an exhibition consultant for the Museum of Contemporary Art. In 1999 she became the studio manager and personal assistant of R.B. Kitaj, up until his passing in 2007. She now consults with artists and collectors on collection management and legacy planning, and serves as Director of the R.B. Kitaj Studio Project and the R. B. Kitaj Estate.    

R.B. Kitaj's Yellow Studio, Westwood, Los Angeles, California 2007. 
© R.B. Kitaj Estate. All rights reserved