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Pete Nawara left a comment for 'Create Culture'"You got it. But you'll have to fly me out to paint it there for you!"
Create Culture left a comment for 'Pete Nawara'"we still sweat your stuff. can we have a painting for our massive headquarters?"
Profile Information
- My Role
- Artist
- My Discipline(s)
- Visual Arts
- About Me And My Work
- It’s not by chance that I have chosen the human figure, and particularly the portrait, as a subject. The human face is the most visually captivating thing a person can see, and we identify with the human body and face more than anything else. I’ve heard a story that when someone asked John Ford, while setting up a shoot in the desert, “What are we going to shoot out here in the middle of nowhere?” Ford replied, “I’m going to shoot the most interesting thing in the world: the human face.”
The physical process starts with the camera. A subject is chosen and asked to pose. The camera is set on a tripod and the subject is asked to pretend the camera is a mirror, and that they are ‘checking themselves out’. Several photos are taken and then transferred into the computer for digital modifications. The photos are then touched up and arranged in a composition. Then, using vector tools, they are traced into shapes of color. Once they have been ‘vectorized’, they are printed in grayscale. The printed piece is then projected onto canvas and the piece is traced loosely. The shapes are then filled in with acrylic paint thinned with water, and gouache markers. Lastly, gold leaf is applied.
I strive to make objects that are aesthetically pleasing. The use of photography, computer software, and projection give the work a contemporary feel, while thinned out acrylic and gouache keep with the tradition of paint on canvas. The flattened areas of vibrant color and larger than life portraits relate to the era of pop art, while still maintaining a relationship with the advancing technology of computer art. Exhibiting the use of, what I like to call, analog vector graphics, the pieces are assembled with a certain disregard for the realism of the original photographic portrait.
The end result is an aesthetic object that uses color and texture to entice the viewer’s eye. The conceptual ideas behind the work are for the observer to interpret on their own, or to not interpret at all. The idea is that the pieces are aesthetic and whether you like them or not, they have an immediate presence. They are not difficult to comprehend visually or conceptually.
It’s about how we see ourselves. What aesthetic ideal do we hold when we’re observing ourselves, or just people in general? How would we look to someone if we were to display all our vanities for the world to see? How does our reflection relate to us? When viewing ourselves, there are certain imperfections that we are more aware of than an outside viewer might be. Isn’t it like that when artists look at their own work?
As humans, we have a certain obsession with reflections, and with seeing ourselves. Look at the world around us. How many mirrors do you see when walking down the street, in a hotel, or in someone’s home. People are constantly sneaking a peek at how they look in their new jeans by catching their reflection in the shop windows. In our cars, we have a rear view mirror and two side mirrors, but for some reason we still find a necessity to have a vanity mirror, often on both the driver’s side and the passenger’s side. The thought of a ‘vanity mirror’ to begin with is a funny concept. We look at ourselves in the reflections of car and bus windows. When we’re on the train, we use the windows to look at ourselves and other people. We are obsessed with the way people look.
- Places I Would Like To Visit
- My travels have always brought a wealth of inspiration as well as adding to my visual library. I have memories that evoke feelings that I can call upon when I'm trying to attain a certain feel in a piece. I think I've been really lucky to have so many experiences the world over, and can't wait for the next adventure.
- Art Forms And Cultures I Would Like To Engage With
- I'd love to get together with my graduating class and do a show together. I think we really complimented each other in the past, and have all grown separately. I can't possibly imagine what we'd come up with.
- My Creative Influences & Favorite Artists
- Alphonse Mucha, Egon Schiele, Sandro Botticelli, Maurice Sendak, Vermeer, Roy Lichtenstein, Handan Figen, Elsa Ers, Susan Osman, Roberta Marroquin Doria, Elizabeth Nanut, Livia Tedeschi, Andy Warhol, Vik Muniz
- My Artistic Affiliations
- Art For Progress
- My Web link
- http://www.petenawara.com
Pete Nawara's Images
Comment Wall (5 comments)
- At 10:31pm on June 11, 2010, Create Culture said…
- we still sweat your stuff. can we have a painting for our massive headquarters?
- At 6:44pm on October 28, 2009,
Erin McDougald said… - Tonight- Victor Garcia featured with my group at the Allerton. This Sarturday night, costume party at Allerton Hotel 8-midnight. Pete, come by... say hello.... ??
- At 2:59pm on January 27, 2009,
Nico Daswani said… - Hey Pete, you will see in your settings that you can use your own theme (background) and choose from a whole list. Enjoy!
- At 5:18pm on January 20, 2009,
John Rouse said… - Pete, love your work man. When are you coming back to town? We need to get together with Nico again and futher discuss your stay in the Afghan prison.
- At 8:26am on January 15, 2009, Nico Daswani said…
- Peteee! Welcome to the community. THanks for posting such a great profile. As I mentioned, we're launching mid-feb, and in the meantime feel free to post as much as you want and let us know on the Forum tab what works for you, what you would like to see on here, what you don't like, etc...
Hope to see you soon brother.
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