John Francis Gallagher is a Boston-based contemporary artist. Born in Drogheda, Ireland in the Boyne Valley, he emigrated to the United States at 19. John worked in graphic design, advertising and architectural rendering before turning his hand, full-time, to painting. A self-taught figurative artist, his work has a vintage style that is influenced by the so-called pulp artists of the 20th century. In his large-scale canvases, tone is given precedent to create realism. Working within a limited palette of tones, The paint is woven under, over, and into itself in layers to create a portrait that is seemingly simple but satisfyingly complex. The work has a strong quiet energy that creates space for itself in a frenetic, busy world by being the exact opposite. Often drawn from 1960s European Cinema, the paintings have a psychological charge that marries well with their iconic imagery. His subject matter is often caught in a quiet moment of simple distraction, be it answering a phone or lighting a cigarette; this slight distraction creates a crack in the facade for us to view the human behind the pose. This is the central aim of the work; to represent a humanity that can capture us as viewers and allow us to relate to the art in a very individual way. While the iconic figures may seem far away and unreachable, the emotion is always universal and close to us all. His work is collected in Australia, Europe, and America.