Halcyon has announced Point Blank, a solo show of brand-new paintings by visionary artist Bob Dylan. Opening on the 9th of May 2025, the exhibition unveils Dylan’s latest series of works that demonstrates his sensibility for storytelling. Based on quick studies of characters, objects, and scenarios, his artwork finds poetic resonance in the details. These new paintings read like a glimpse into his visual journal; they are a masterful expression of a dynamic imagination, emphasised via the eclectic swathe of subjects depicted. Dylan explains that in creating these paintings, ‘The idea was not only to observe the human condition, but to throw myself into it with great urgency.’
Point Blank will feature a series of 97 original paintings on paper by Bob Dylan. Akin to his previous series, Drawn Blank, a series of graphite drawings made while on the road travelling between Europe and the Americas in 1989-92 and later reworked with paint, these new works use original sketches created between 2021 and 2022 as their foundation. These drawings were then painted over with vibrant colours and expressive brushwork. In enlivening his drawings with paint, the artist explains: ‘As to the colour schemes, the idea was to create living, breathing entities that have emotional resonance, colours used as weapons and mood setters, a means of storytelling.’
The choice of subjects adds to the series’ intense emotional resonance. Intriguing object studies such as a mirror which displays a set of lips, a saxophonist looking introspectively at his instrument and a cowboy, whose pistol hangs on his belt in front of a rising sun, all provoke our imagination to contemplate the protagonists of his art and the situations they find themselves in.
The painterliness of the new series is infused with a spontaneity, as if capturing fleeting moments or memories. Dylan draws us close with his intimate representations of subjects that appear to stem from a lived perspective – as the viewer we are invited in to inhabit these spaces he depicts.
Dylan has said previously that drawing provides moments where he can ‘relax and refocus a restless mind’ amidst busy schedules. The personal quality of the Point Blank series is a product of this practice: providing an insight into the artist’s imagination and immediate surroundings. The series includes a vast range of figure studies, perhaps from people the artist has encountered or imagined. Dylan does not distinguish between the two, allowing us to tease the narratives out of our own imagination.
In addition to the 97 artworks on display, a limited selection of the drawings have been reworked as blue, red and neutral monochromatic studies. These additional works emphasise Dylan’s mastery with tonality and emphasise the emotional weight of his narratives. Perhaps inspired by the lineage of single colour-based painting, he invites associations with Picasso’s early Blue Period (1901-1904) that emphasised melancholia, solitude and despair.
The Point Blank series started as a book of “quick studies” that also includes accompanying prose. The words that accompany the book are like an unfurling story, or a series of dreamlike anecdotes pertaining to certain works. Surreal in its manifestation and automatic in its spontaneity, the interplay of words and visuals enlivens his paintings even further.
Bob Dylan’s contributions to our shared visual lexicon continue to thrive alongside his music, inspired by the poetic potential in the everyday. Consistent with his acclaimed performances over the last few years on the Rough and Rowdy Ways tour, filled with new songs and reimagined versions of his classic repertoire, these paintings are a further testament to an artist in a period of exuberant creativity.
Paul Green, President and Founder of Halcyon: ‘It is nearly 18 years since Halcyon first started working with Bob Dylan and it has been an extraordinary experience to watch this cultural icon develop into such a critically revered and important visual artist so closely. This latest body of paintings feels like a more intimate connection to the artist than in any of his previous work and it is a great privilege to share them with the public for the first time.’
Kate Brown, Creative Director at Halcyon: ‘These works on paper feel like memories, intangible windows into the life and imagination of one of the greatest storytellers who ever lived. People who attend the exhibition will discover that they provoke stories from our imagination. We consider the circumstances of the protagonists and ponder our movement through the spaces that the artist depicts.’
‘Bob Dylan’s Point Blank series carries the pulse of a restlessly observant mind—one that has long wandered between music, poetry, and image-making.’ – Shai Baitel, Artistic Director of the Museum of Modern Art, Shanghai.
97 brand new original paintings by the artist will be on display at 148 New Bond Street from 9th May.
Bob Dylan: Point Blank opens at Halcyon 148 New Bond Street on 9 May. The exhibition is open daily and is free to enter.