VIDEO: Chuck Close at Pace Prints. The Armory Show 2012.

Maybe it’s the direct gaze of the person addressing the viewer, often the artist himself, or a well-recognized celebrity, or perhaps it’s the cascading kaleidoscope of nestled ovoids, rhombs, squares and triangles making up the face, whatever the case, Chuck Close’s grandiose portraits and self-portraits have become recognized as masterpieces of contemporary art. Close, it can be argued, is making a direct reference to Vasily Kandinsky‘s “Color Study: Squares with Concentric Circles“, 1913. Both works examine color theory and effects of optical illusions created by juxtaposing related hues and allowing the eye to interpret the final color combination.

See the interview about Helen Frankenthaler’s Ukiyo-e woodcut prints.

galleryIntell talked to Jacob Lewis, Director at Pace Prints in New York, who described the intensely intricate process of creating this 213-color silk screen the gallery selected for their booth at The Armory Show.

See more interviews from The Armory Show.

Interview © galleryIntell. Images courtesy of Pace Prints, Artwork © Chuck Close