Figure Painting and Number Painting (1984)

Figure Paintings (1984/1999/2000) and Number Painting (2005) are two examples of Kennedy's conceptual approach to creating visual representations of governmental power discrepancies. With a title that nods to the art historic trend of painting the human form, Figure Paintings quickly shifts viewers attention to another type of figure, the military statistics of the Canadian, Mexican and American naval fleets. 

In his 2006 publication, Garry Neill Kennedy: Superstar Shadow, 1984-2005, Kennedy expands on Figure Paintings: "The figures are painted in a geometric typeface in white with a black shadow outline—similar to the identification numbers on the sides of the naval ships. I placed an explanatory legend on the wall as follows: 'Fig. 1—paint used to cover the ships of the Canadian Navy. Fig. 2—paint used to cover the ships of the U.S.A. Navy. Fig. 3—paint used to cover the ships of the Mexico Navy. Fig. 4— mixtures of Figures 1 and 2 in quantities proportional to the amounts required to cover the fleets of Canada and U.S.A. Fig. 5—mixtures of 2 and 3 in quantities proportional to the amounts required to cover the fleets of Mexico and U.S.A.' ... The typeface used in the installation was Superstar Shadow. The idea to use this font came to me from having seen the numbers painted on the sides of the NATO ships that from time-to-time entered and exited the Halifax harbour – clearly visible to me from my NSCAD office window."

- Garry Neill Kennedy, Superstar Shadow (1984-2005), pg. 12

After this initial use of the Superstar Shadow font, Kennedy went on to create his own interpretation of the typeface, later using it in numerous projects including, Garry Neill Kennedy: Superstar Shadow (Stride Gallery, Calgary, 1986), UH-HUH (S.L. Simpson Gallery, Toronto, 1992), AN EYE FOR AN EYE (Museum London, London, ON, 2004), and FAILURE OF INTELLIGENCE (McMaster Museum of Art, Hamilton, ON, 2005). 

In 2005, Kennedy further explored creating visuals of military domination through ship paint colours with Number Painting. As he writes in Superstar Shadow: "Number Painting is a variation on Figure Paintings, a work I first presented at the 49th Parallel Gallery, New York, in 1985 (sic). In that work I attempted to comment on the military might of the United States in relation to its northern and southern neighbours – Canada and Mexico. Number Painting continues the theme of the dominant military power, but since the French fleet would be anchored in Halifax harbour during the course of the exhibition, I thought it would be more relevant to paint a comparison of Canada and France with the size and strength of the United States. I also exchanged the heading “Fig.” with “No.”: hence the title Number Painting."

Figure Painting was first installed at the 49th Parallel Centre for Canadian Contemporary Art in 1984, then re-articulated in Kennedy's solo show Wall Paintings and Related Works 1974-1995 at the Owens Art Gallery (Sackville, NB) in 1996, then alongside the paintings of Arthur Lismer at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia (AGNS) in 1999, and again for Kennedy's retrospective Work of Four Decades (AGNS, NGC, Beaverbrook Art Gallery, 2000-2001). The work was subsequently purchased by the National Gallery of Canada (NGC) in 2001 and shown as part of the group exhibition Art in Canada (NGC, 2017). Number Painting was installed at AGNS ARTport in 2005.