Giacometti said “what made the difference between a dead man and a person was his gaze.” Where does the gaze reside and what is its power? Why does it compel the viewer to respond? The subjects of my work seek to exert power with their gaze, to look back at and challenge the viewer, striving to achieve dominance and become the protagonist. The unsettling nature of my work is heightened by subliminal manipulation and distortion. In my most recent portraits, visual references to Renaissance paintings play a game with the viewer, teasing them with the ambiguity between historical viewpoint and the creation of their own new meaning and narrative.
I mainly work on illustration board. I paint a layer of gesso, following the contours of my subject to give a 3-dimensional effect and then draw on the gesso surface with coloured pencil. The detail and intensity of my work has been influenced by the artists of the Northern Renaissance and by Giovanni Battista Moroni.
My drawings are available as limited edition prints and I am taking commissions for portraits.
My contact details are:
Phone: 07766 493833
Email: jobarber16@hotmail.co.uk
I mainly work on illustration board. I paint a layer of gesso, following the contours of my subject to give a 3-dimensional effect and then draw on the gesso surface with coloured pencil. The detail and intensity of my work has been influenced by the artists of the Northern Renaissance and by Giovanni Battista Moroni.
My drawings are available as limited edition prints and I am taking commissions for portraits.
My contact details are:
Phone: 07766 493833
Email: jobarber16@hotmail.co.uk
