Steven Baines
Brroklyn | NY |

My oil paintings aim to be metaphors for the passage of time, the brevity of human life. They continue the tradition of Vanitas and Momento Mori paintings. However they are not heavy or morbid. They are optimistic and humorous, like sad, dark lyrics in a catchy lighthearted melody. The lighthearted sensibility is emphasized by colorful abstractions that form the background for figurative images which have been chosen for their symbolic value to represent the fragile and transitory nature of life: luxuriantly plumed birds, grinning sculls, ripe fruit, bubbles, etc. Many of my paintings employ the use of reflective glass beads. The reflective surface creates a seductive effect similar to that of a highway sign illuminated in the night by the headlights of a car. The glass beads could be seen as a contemporary twist on mirrors, another traditional symbolic image found in many Vanitas works.

E: bainesbaines@hotmail.com