Ray Turner’s massive portrait series, Population, is a grouping of over 100 12” x 12” likenesses painted on glass. Most noted for his brooding, epic landscapes, Turner’s vast array of human physiognomies seem to inherit the same topographical quality as an undulating valley vista. The moody, psychological reflections and use of impasto betray the stylistic tradition of the German Fauves and Expressionists, while his use of violent color and exaggerated features recall such influences as Vincent Van Gogh and Francis Bacon. Peppered throughout the series are the sometimes fictitious self portraits; the imaginary traits and disfigurements lending a slightly unsettling but poetic quality to the collection of visages. Skotia Gallery is Population’s first stop in a traveling installation that will subsequently be exhibited in the Pasadena Museum of California Art, and San Francisco CA.
Published books of the show are available for purchase.
