Robin Eley

Hyperrealist portraitist Robin Eley creates paintings of nudes draped in cellophane—or bowing beneath the Sisyphean weight of crumpled masses of paper or aluminum—that are allusions to mythology, the Western tradition of religious painting, and symbols of contemporary life. “By shortening our attention spans to the click of a mouse or the swipe of a finger, pictures are being reduced to a disposable folly,” Eley has said. “For some the solution is to shout louder, demanding attention by raising the volume of the message. My approach is different… my paintings speak softly, the labor of my technique demanding you linger, step closer, and listen.” Working primarily with oils, he concerns himself with chiaroscuro, tonality, and dramatic staging in the tradition of the Old Masters, with particular care toward capturing the tactility of skin.