30 x 25cm, acrylic on canvas
My small canvas studies base on the monochrome illustrations in Cesar Ripa’s iconologia continue. These are learning aids in a way, embedding postures, fabric folds and symbolic elements in my muscle memory to enhance my improvised drawings.
Allegory of Fidelity, acrylic on canvas, 30 x 25cm.
the main composition is borrowed from the moral emblem in Ripa’s Iconologia.
Allegory of The Beginning, acrylic on canvas 30 x 25cm
main pose of the figure and symbolic element of the letter and small man in the creators hand borrowed from the Iconologia.
“We’re all in the same boat, but some of us aren’t getting our feet wet”, acrylic on canvas, 30 x 60cm
This study for a larger painting was painted a couple of Prime Ministers ago, during the reign of David Cameron. An allegory of class disparity.
And the 70 x 100cm painting it spawned, which is difficult to get a photo of due to reflections on the dark paint.
Painted during my MA studies at Gray’s, Here is a series of Paintings combining elements from historical paintings, particularly still life and genre scenes such as Dutch “Merry Company” paintings, with imaginary elements and found images of contemporary political figures and animals. The intention or meaning of the resulting image is reliant on the links made by the viewer between the various symbolic elements, so that I have composed and drafted the image but the viewer writes the story using the clues to build the narrative.
Each is created using acrylic, ink and varnish on paper collaged onto canvas.
Each painting is available to purchase, email me matthewgwells@outlook.com with expressions of interest.
Matt Wells Art 