From grid-like woven patterns to interwoven pony strands, Antonio Santin‘s hyper-realistic oil paintings (formerly) look incredibly similar to the decorative carpets on which they are modeled. By studying real carpets and the way they creak, fold and handle light, he transfers these qualities to canvas. However, the overall designs are a product of the artist’s imagination.
Santín trained as a sculptor and his eye for form and the power of contrast lent itself to paintings with tactile textures and a dimensionally illusory quality. “Because his technical skills allowed for much more detail than can be found on a sewn carpet, over the past two years he began to invent the whole picture,” says Marc Strauswhich presents Santín’s work in the artist’s seventh solo exhibition at the gallery.
The artist continues to use a precisely calibrated pneumatic compressor that allows him to apply oil pigments millimeters at a time. Tens of thousands of individual dots are arranged to create a consistent rhythm across the entire surface.
New paintings in Puente de plataor ‘silver bridge’, celebrates the relationship between abstraction and pure pattern, reveling in vibrant color and complexity in works that are more personal. The show starts tomorrow and runs until March 1 in New York. Discover more on the gallery’s website and that of Santín Instagram.
