Artist’s Statement
"I Sing the Body Eclectic"This body of work is intended to portray a selected cross section of the human experience, stripped of the coverings we so seriously choose to conceal, mask or amplify our God-given bodily forms. In that regard this work is revealing, but not just in the physical sense. In many of these images, drawn directly from the live model, I have attempted to reveal some sense of the inner self, some expression of purpose or personal history that may well have been unintended in the original pose.
All of Life is Story. I like to think that there is a story that is implied in each picture. In most cases, that story is told in a facial expression, a physical stance, an action, or maybe just a gaze. My nudes don’t modestly look away like Degas’ or Renoir’s; rather many of them look right through you . . . reminiscent of the confrontational style of Egon Schiele.
I am an admirer of the painting style of Pearlstein, the drawing style of Ingres, and of course, have always been inspired by the enduring physical grace in the work of Buonarroti.
In Leaves of Grass, Walt Whitman celebrates and sings of the “Body Electric”. I ask the viewer to see beauty in each of my nudes, male or female, young or older, black or white. I ask the viewer to linger a moment and guess if there isn’t some interesting story being hinted about who it is they are looking at, or what they are thinking, or doing. I ask viewers to put themselves into each picture and dream up their own stories about what they see, or would like to see, or imagine to be . . .
I ask the viewer to shamelessly enjoy, even revel in the beauty of the human Body Eclectic!
Tim Brian McSweeney
