As in previous works, Condo’s ‘Distanced Figures’ synthesize pictorial languages and motifs to create what he describes as ‘composites of various psychological states’. The themes in the drawings not only respond to our current situation and the absence of human contact, they are a continuation of the recurrent themes in the artist’s work. The figures in this new series of works often appear in pairs, linked by intersecting lines, yet their viewpoints do not connect. For Condo, the condition of isolation also carries positive connotations of seclusion in the studio space.
George Condo
Drawings for Distanced Figures
Made during the last three weeks, in the artist’s home studio in New York state, these portrait drawings are evocative of the experience of isolation during this unsettling period of social distance. Depicted in crayon, pencil and ink, overlapping figures are layered, combining multiple viewpoints to reflect different emotions occurring simultaneously; fear, paranoia, claustrophobia, panic and distress are portrayed in this particular group of drawings but handled with such beauty, elegance and resolve as to provide an antidote.
Under the umbrella of Hauser & Wirth’s new global philanthropic and charitable initiative #artforbetter, we are donating 10% of gross profits from sales of all works in our online exhibitions, beginning with ‘George Condo. Drawings for Distanced Figures’, to the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund for the World Health Organization.
All images: © George Condo
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