Only two years after leaving art school, Jock McFadyen was offered the 'Artist in Residence' at the National Gallery in London. This was followed by successive commissioned projects: first by The Imperial War Museum and then by the Royal Opera House where he designed sets and costumes for Sir Kenneth MacMillan's last ballet, The Judas Tree.

After this versatile beginning , McFadyen started to focus on urban landscapes, mainly of the East End of London, and often on a monumental scale. His friendship with writers like Ian Sinclair and Will Self, produced a number of prints and booklets and even an exhibition at Agnews. Then in 2005, with his musician wife Susie Honeyman, they collaborated to create The Grey Gallery, a nomadic entity set up with the aim of working across disciplines.

In 2019, McFadyen was invited to be the Chief Curator of the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy, with his theme "art which is a response to the world". His contribution to Cure3 is a continuation of this theme: a polar bear sits on a little island with no ice or snow in sight. This beautiful and metaphorical work not only highlights the animals' isolation, it also reflects the perilous situation we all face on a very endangered planet.