New Realism: Life in Abstraction by Juan Cossio

R. Alexander presents New Realism: Life in Abstraction, the upcoming exhibition featuring mixed media works by Juan Cossio. The show will be on display at R. Alexander from November 26 – December 15, 2018. Let us know you're coming and RSVP here! 

A unique element of Cossio’s work lies in his choice of media. His principle tool for painting is an airbrush, which sprays paint onto the canvas and allows for seamless blending of pigments. This blending allows Cossio to achieve the high detail and precision found in his elaborate works. By using an airbrush instead of a standard paintbrush, Cossio elevates a tool originally designed to retouch photographs into the primary means of creating a photorealistic image. In each of his compositions, Cossio experiments with the human form and its ability to convey emotion in functional and minimalistic interiors.

Many of his works echo those of the New Realism movement. The paintings conjure an atmosphere in which the figure is derived from reality, but the other elements are fabricated, obscure, utilitarian, and yet unexpected. Cossio pares down the environment in which the figure is placed to direct all concentration on the figure.

Though Cossio works in a hyperrealist style, his scenes are set apart from the reality of day-to-day living. Cossio explains, “I create images starting from a contradiction. I am a painter who does not want to paint reality. I want to interpret it with all the means that are at my reach.” His interpretation of reality is one of appreciation for the beauty, emotion, and paradoxes of everyday life.