Christopher Lucania is an artist who uses some unlikely mediums. Sure they include more common items like acrylic, latex and oil, but he also adds in plaster, alcohol and large amounts of copy toner. “I also use a process of transferring manipulated images to the canvas.,” he tells us. “It involves a jigsaw of copied printouts that I fix to the canvas with a gel medium. After they dry overnight, I rub away the paper to reveal the transfer. Basically I use the gel medium to draw the copy toner out of the paper and the imagery becomes one with the canvas. The paper is merely a vessel.”
Though a professional graphic artist for over 13 years, he only turned to painting 4 years ago to realize his own, personal vision. What did he feel like this type of art could do? “My work is very focused on emotion rather than messages,” he says. “I feel that in society everyone is generally telling everyone how they should think, and I rather not add to the white noise.
“Besides that, emotional connections are much more challenging and rewarding. I always feel that the emotional connection someone can have with a painting will far exceed the benefits of simply telling a personal story. Now, regarding those emotions, I like to focus on unlikely combination of them. It’s not too difficult to create an uplifting work or a somber one, but if I can create something that mixes ‘victory, redemption, and hope despite imminent tragedy, judgement, and ultimate annihilation’- then I have something.”
Love how you can just feel the powerful emotion emanated from his work – especially through his the statues…
