When George Rouy arrived at Camberwell College of Arts in London, in 2012, he was dismayed to find that his talent for life drawing seemed to count for little. “Figurative painting was the most untrendy, non-vogue thing to do,” he says. “So I felt a bit lost. I was doing sculpture, but I wasn’t really feeling it.”
Twelve years on, the tables have turned: Not only is the British art world full of exciting young painters of the human figure, from Louise Giovanelli to Jake Grewal, but Rouy himself could not be hotter. Last year, at age 30, he became the youngest artist to be represented by Hauser & Wirth. This past fall, the blockbuster gallery staged in London a celebrated exhibition, “The Bleed, Part I,” which showcased Rouy’s oversize,…