Maybe it was all the costume dramas I watched with my mom as a kid. Or maybe it was all those fairy tales my grandmother read to me. This abstract-lovin’ Artsy is also a sucker for all things with a romantic past. These porcelain plate paintings by Flemish artist Jan De Vliegher take decorative museum pieces and amp them up to larger than life works of art.
( no title available ), oil on canvas
De Vliegher takes photos of plates in museum displays– you know the ones in the room off to the side that people take one peek in and then turn around in search of the Picassos– then uses the photos as reference for his larger than life paintings. He takes these precious little objects, hiding behind their glass cases and pumps them up in size and energy.
Sevres, Dancing Girl, oil on canvas, 43×43
( No title available ), oil on canvas
Flower and Saz, oil on canvas, 79×79
These are no photorealistic depictions of prized antiques. De Vliegher doesn’t concentrate on detail, but rather turns his attention and brush to capturing the essence of the atmosphere of each of these pieces in their little glass houses. They almost come to life with the way in which he freely and loosely sketches their likenesses. Cold porcelain resurrected.
Cleopatra, oil on canvas, 79×79
Hear the artist speak about his process and see installation images in this video in which Vincent Zambrano interviews Jan De Vliegher.
Want to see more work by Jan De Vliegher? Check out his artist’s page at Mike Weiss Gallery.
Images via Mike Weiss Gallery and Beautiful Decay.
