Joe Tucker. Canongate Books, (224p) ISBN: 9781805300663. Biography, read 20/08/25, Paperback ★★★★★

The Secret Painter

I’ve been meaning to read this for a while and now seemed the perfect time for it as a bit of a break from Katabasis.

I was unsure what I was getting into in this book but it turned out to be a magnificently honest biography of a man who lived as an artist for over 60 years unknown to everyone around him, a man who was dedicated to painting and drawing to such an extent that when they started to catalogue his works after his death there were more than 500 completed paintings squirreled around his house.

From this Joe Tucker comes across as a complicated man whose reasoning behind a lot of his decisions in life seem extremely opaque, especially after the fact and at a couple of removes of his nephew posthumously trying to get into the life of his uncle.

A biography of personal, familial, and friends memories of a man who kept himself to himself may have posed more questions than it answered but in the end this story of Eric showed a man outside of the system and missing the times that could have helped, and not having the social or cultural support system to help him achieve in his lifetime what was probably always his life’s dream and then worked hard to master the medium he chose to work in.

From this medium he produced such strong works, depictions of working class life in his area that show great warmth and compassion and understanding, not looking in at this but being part of the community that he represented, both on canvas and in himself.

The story has such a bittersweet ending, but as Joe Tucker explains, an ending that could never have happened if his uncle was still alive.

I was also touched by Joe’s examination of his motives and why this story is so important, which it is.

A wonderfully written life of a fascinating artist.