“Taste” was my final project for Painting 3, a series of portraits starting with these initial 3 paintings. The name is derived from the face that the images are cropped just below the eyes making the lips the central focus. Taste is also the most unavoidably intimate of senses. One can smell and see from a distance, even touch with a sense of detachment, but taste requires mental and physical proximity. All the figures are white and male with the primary focus being on the chest nose and lips. It challenges the western assumption that the default viewer of a work is the white straight male (which why works concerning the african american experience are considered “black”, women’s issues “feminist”, and non hetero subjects “queer”). I feel that during the course of this past semester my painting has greatly improved, and I hope that Painting 4 holds even greater promise. These three paintings currently sit on the table in my painting cubicle as a reminder of what I have to surpass.
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I agree, your painting is greatly improved and looks awesome. I went to a show here that i think you would have liked, I can’t remember the artists name, but i’m going to be back in that area tuesday and if its still up I’ll let you know