I paint persons of very subtle emotion, making statements through very little expression. I want the viewer to create their own connection with my paintings, through seeing these subtle expressions. To do that, it’s important I keep my subject, subjective!
I force myself to paint once a day, even if my subject is not greatly interesting. The most important step of starting a painting is simply by putting paint on canvas, then naturally I am taken away by the process. I do lots of smaller works, to practice for a large piece.
I chose to paint people, because I believe it’s hard to look at anything else, and share that kind of connection. Recognizing faces is hardwired into our brains, so when the viewer sees one of my portraits, I want that part of their mind to be stimulated, creating an experience that they’ve encountered someone.
My pieces with heavier emotion lean towards expressing to people, that we wouldn’t be normal without our ups and downs, and to remember we all feel that imbalance of being human.
Joshua Wallace is a young self taught artist based in Vernon, BC. He was a part of the inaugural Youth Artist in Residence at the Vernon Community Art Centre. His work has been shown at the Armstrong Art Gallery, Erickson Gallery, Leap Gallery and the Rotary Centre for the Arts. His work is in the collection of the Vernon Art Gallery and private collections in the Okanagan, Nova Scotia and Australia.