Exhibit to see

Each week I’ll select an exhibit worth seeing. Of course, it is my bias, but…I’ll try to select artists from various genres who I think are worth knowing. Chuck Close has definitely been an influence on my art. It was the grand scale and photorealism that inspired me.

Photorealism is a movement which began in the late 1960’s, in which scenes are painted in a style closely resembling photographs. The subject matter is frequently banal and without particular interest; the true subject of a photorealist work is the way in which we interpret photographs and paintings in order to create an internal representation of the scene depicted.

The leading members of the Photorealist movement are Richard Estes and Chuck Close. Estes specializes in street scenes with elaborate reflections in window-glass; Close does enormous portraits of usually expressionless faces. Other photorealists also typically specialize in one particular subject: horses, trucks, diners, etc.

My portrait work is nothing like his, but I wish it was. If you are anywhere near the Reno, Nevada area, don’t miss this exhibit.