Bruce Adams

I chose Bruce Adams for having same intrest in making work about the same people I do.  I has even more specific focus then I do in painting tattooed women most nudes, but I feel we have same interest and drive in our work.  I find his paintings beautiful I hope specifically with my portraits that I can make my subjects look just as beautiful and captivating as he does.  I want to make people that may even be considered ugly or average in todays society with tattoos look beautiful in my photographs.  He does with his subject every person no matter how they look are beautiful in way he set them up in his paintings and with his use of light and color.  That is what I want to do in my portraits of my subjects.  His work is currently displayed in ghost print gallery 22 west broad.  It is called Drawing blood 3: Tattooed women.  

Biography:

Bruce recieved his education at Statue University College of Buffalo recieving his Bachelors and Masters there M.A. in 83 and B.A. in 76.

"Adams has straddled the fine art and art education communities as a painter, installation and performance artist, public school art teacher, adjunct college art instructor, arts advocate, and more recently critical and creative writer. He has exhibited extensively, and his work is included in numerous private and museum collections"blic school art teacher, adjunct college art instructor, arts advocate, and more recently critical and creative writer. He has exhibited extensively, and his work is included in numerous private and museum collections. " - http://www.adams-studio.com/biographical.htm

His work has has historical references and makes his work about the act of painting an meaning of that and viewing it.  He says he received his real education from the western contemporary art scene beginning in the 1980's.  Bruce has been in several are exhibitions and recieve 3 awards and grants for his work.  He is a concept driven artist all his paintings having meaning and big believer in having bodies of work rather then having several individual and completely different paintings.

This is his artist statement for the specific body of work of his that I am interested in.

http://www.adams-studio.com/tattoo%20series%20ststement.htm

Two Qoutes

" The dual acts of self-alteration and selective disclosure are forms of empowerment - affirmations of personal control."

 "As an art form, tattooing has its own history and aesthetics and the tattooed individual is a product - a record - of a particular place and time in that historical line. My paintings add another layer, subjectively encompassing my perceptions of several layers of artistic and cultural intentions."
Both are taken from http://www.adams-studio.com/tattoo%20series%20ststement.htm.

Interview:

http://www.adams-studio.com/bruce%20adams.jpg

Gallery:

http://ghostprintgallery.com/current-show/

Website:

http://www.adams-studio.com/

I heavily recommend going to ghost print and viewing his work.  He is probably my favorite artist I have researched so far in relation to my work.  The gallery owner is really nice and awesome will tell you anything you want or need to know about Bruce.