 In a remarkably short period of time, Jeremy
Lipking has emerged
as one of the country's premier realist artists. His talent, which
rivals that of the late nineteenth century painterly realists such
as John Singer Sargent, Joaquin Sorolla and Anders Zorn, is outstanding
for a painter of any age. It is all the more remarkable since he
is only thirty years old. Like these great painters of the past,
Lipking is a virtuoso artist. His canvases convey the magical aura
of convincing imagery emerging out of a field of paint.
Realism has been misunderstood through most of the twentieth century
as an art of imitation. In truth, when practiced by a painter like
Jeremy Lipking, realist painting is a powerful creative force.
Many viewers are drawn to his art thinking that it looks just like
a photograph. Actually Lipking's vision is the opposite of what
a camera does. A photograph tends to flatten an image, reducing
all relationships of color and shade to a stiff mechanical pattern.
Lipking's skill lies in his ability to probe in and around his
subject. With a highly sensitive eye, he sees nuances of value
and hue that the camera and most people can never see. More incredibly,
he is able to translate his highly nuanced vision into a painted
image. Lipking's true subject is his pictorial fluency. Seeing
one of his paintings involves entering into the pictorial world
he has created. Like all great realists, he has the ability to
generate powerful fictions.
I have had the pleasure to watch Lipking paint on a number of
occasions. The experience is both exhilarating and baffling. Lipking
begins his paintings in a surprisingly loose, painterly manner-something
I never would have expected. He makes initial marks to find the
scale and proportions of his subject. Then he applies a broad underpainting
of color to capture the desired hue and value. At this stage his
paintings look almost abstract, consisting of a pattern of large
color shapes.
Lipking's characteristic brushwork or gesture
is what I like to call the "open touch." What I mean
by this phrase is that Lipking applies paint in broad, loose
facets, often leaving areas of bare canvas in between. In subsequent
additions the open areas are gradually filled in, creating a
breathing lattice-like structure of paint. In a curious way,
the method is somewhat like Cezanne's manner. But whereas Cezanne
emphasized the discontinuity of his touches, Lipking works with
close values, so that the result is a seamless veil of color.
The magic occurs in the finish. As he progresses, he gradually
refines each area, adjusting relationships of color and adding
deft touches to define select elements. He brings certain forms
to a razor sharp level of finish. Other passages are left vague
and undefined. In this interplay of sharp and loose, the painting
literally opens up and breathes. This is what makes his art seem
so lifelike. Instead of resting as static images, his canvases
pulse with the subtle energy of a living thing.
Michael Zakian, Ph.D.
Director
Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art
Pepperdine University |
Publications
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June 2008, American
Art Collector
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Fall/Winter 2008, American Artist Highlights: Masters
of Realism
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November 2008, The Artist's Magazine: Drawing out
the Riches
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October 2008, American Artist: Self Portrait Competition
- Fall 2007, American Artist Workshop
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May 2006, American Art Collector
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September 2006, ArtNews, review of Lipking's NY exhibition
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January 2006, People
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April 2006, 805
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May 2003, American Artist
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