GEORGE CONDO (USA, B. 1957)

The enigmatic figure in The Painter in Greenwich Village Thinking about his Ominous Destiny defies convention. Painted in 1993-
1994 by George Condo, the painting appears to be a portrait, but the lack of obvious facial features causes us to venture into the artist’s mysterious world. This sense of trepidation is heightened by the lack of contextual clues in the azure background and the presence of a round yet feature-less face, rendered in a slightly bronzed green and highlights of white paint. One wonders what would have seemed ominous to the painter under the artifice of an expressionless face.

Having emerged onto the New York art scene in the early 1980s, George Condo is known for his inventive art historical references that reconfigure the Western art in ways that may seem gestural, comical, at times probing. His portraits show a variety of characters from different strata of the society; though imaginative in depiction, they have their roots in contemporary American culture. Calling his depiction “Artificial Realism,” the artist sought to explore the various psychological states experienced in everyday life, as realistic as they are artificial.

Among the many precedents of modern portraiture, Picasso’s works have provided the most direct references for Condo. The incorporation of multi-perspective facial features, combination of highly saturated colors, and articulated tension between figuration and abstraction leave their marks in Condo’s works. By expanding and re-inventing the pictorial vocabulary of portraiture, Condo situates himself in multiple temporalities. He playfully interweaves the classical and the contemporary as well as the high and the low.