Thoughts from the artist: These self-portraits were created by using a mirror formed from a sheet of black acrylic clamped in a slight twist. Conceptually, I had been pondering the Fermi paradox, which contrasts the statistical likelihood of there being intelligent life in other parts of our Galaxy against the startling fact there is absolutely no evidence of there being any. The Fermi paradox, together with the atmospheric qualities of light (another preoccupation) fuse together in these self-portraits. Light is something I keep coming back to. Each work is an attempt to inch closer to a universal truth; reflection, refraction and the interplay of light and dark become an expression of the human psyche.
Ships from Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland
Painting
Giles Smith