Color Poses
The 2022/2023 season at La Fiambrera opens with Color Poses, Scandinavian artist Lasse Skarbøvik’s second exhibition at the gallery.
The twenty-five original works created in acrylic paint on canvas and paper for Color Poses are accompanied by a selection of numbered and signed serigraphs and giclée prints. The work is colour-tinted on this occasion. A move away from the monochrome nature that characterizes much of Skarbøvik’s previous work. Lasse’s style combines the notion of a figure or part thereof that takes on a recognisable but often ridiculous appearance that indicates how the artist can laugh at himself and the wider human condition in general. What at first might seem like being an attractive image will upon closer scrutiny make the viewer smile when recognising an episode of daily life such as misplacing one’s glasses or simply sporting a bad haircut.
While putting the finishing touches to the paintings for Color Poses, Lasse told us:
We see figures everywhere, they are direct and communicate to you in a basic and immediate way. Color Poses is a celebration of simplicity and diversity. I work with “idea-based” figures and forms that are abstract and close to primitive. The paintings are infused with a broader palette than I normally use, inspired by Scandinavian nature but also by the Spanish art tradition that uses uncomplicated shapes and colours.
Born in Norway in 1966, Lasse is a founder of the influential group, Stockholm Illustration based in the Swedish city where he now resides. He works independently for major publishing and industrial clients. In addition to his illustration, Skarbøvik has designed numerous commissioned exterior and interior murals and artworks around the world. His work has been published in notable publications such as American Illustration, 3×3 Annual, Print Magazine, Communication Arts and the Association of Illustrators Annual. Prominent clients include The New Yorker, Business Week, Time Magazine, New York Times, The Economist, The Financial Times, Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, The Independent and Le Monde.