A Hug From The Art World is pleased to present
an exhibition five years in the making
Roy Nachum: Portraits
The exhibition will be on view at 515 West 19th Street, New York, NY, 10011 from April 7th through May 7th.
Five large scale portraits don the walls of the gallery’s intimate exhibition space. Visitors are invited to immerse themselves in the work. Upon entry the viewer’s eye is drawn towards the hyperrealist quality of the paintings, immediately recognizing the images as depictions of human faces. Once immersed the experience is flipped on its head, surrounded by the work a process of prosopagnosia seems to take place, abstracting the visual experience. Then upon closer inspection, one’s eye is drawn towards the immediate painterly surface, giant brush strokes in Fuchsia, Purple, Prussian Blue and Ultraviolet sweep across the paintings.
The painting process is split into two parts and documented. Part one; the work is extremely labor intensive and in oil paint, Nachum captures every microscopic detail of the human face, using a tiny detail brush, each portrait taking him well over a year to paint. Then he invites each of his painted subjects to participate in the completion of the work, painting their self portrait over the top of his hyperreal depiction of their face, using a much larger brush at speed and in oil paint. It is only after part two; the individuals participation, that Nachum feels the portraits gather their soul and unearth their raw presence.
Visitors are then invited to go upstairs to experience a video and audio component. Nachum has interviewed his collaborators, it is only then the visitor discovers the subjects are visually impaired and/or blind. Nachum’s collaborators are an integral part of the work, the lines between the audience, subject and artist are blurred. Nachum sees his work as an eye opener, a vehicle to allow viewers to confront their own existential apprehensions. His work touches on the senses, the absence of one creating the presence of another. The works in the exhibition are available for sale with the proceeds after costs going to Nachum’s collaborators, Rachel Cross, Romeo Edmead, Leona Godin, Fritz Lauture, and Rosie Lopez.
About the Artist
Roy Nachum is a multidisciplinary artist. He attended Cooper Union in New York. His experimental paintings, installations, sculptures and designs incorporate elements traditionally used in conceptual and interactive artistic practices. Nachum’s work is frequently executed with the participation of people who are blind, leaving fingerprints as documentation of human contact. Nachum’s work is included in many important public and private collections worldwide. He was nominated for 2017’s 59th annual Grammy awards for best recording packaging for the art and art direction of Rihanna’s acclaimed album Anti.
Nachum was born in Israel in 1979 and currently lives and works in New York.