Laura Lucas

Gray Area 2

Oil on canvas

30" x 30" x 1.5"

2022

I make confrontational figurative paintings. I work largely, but not exclusively, through the medium of oil paint. I am interested in liminality and how space can reflect our own inner world, focusing on the brevity that “ordinary” moments possess. I depict reality in an intensified manner, focusing on the spatial and psychological in-between moments. Through my creative process, I look to expose and address aspects of my life that are difficult to understand without visualization. Embracing the present reality and the strange shadows lurking within. The Gray Area series was prompted by the pandemic, where every day felt like the day before, hardly existing, blurred between moments. I use the color gray to capture the transitory state of quarantine to process the disconnection and uncertainty felt during and afterwards. Each painting acts as a window into these vulnerable, uncomfortable moments, where the space and the people that inhabit it are intertwined. Complementary to Gray Area my new series, Technicolor, focuses on the reinvigoration of the self and life coming back into color after feeling disconnected from reality. These self-portraits document the visceral experience of confronting the self and our subconscious lens. Releasing the need for control and surrendering to the turbulence of life. This body of work focuses on everyday settings imbued with revelatory symbolism, bridging both dream and reality.