Chuck Close is an artist who has worked in a wide array of mediums, but he is best known for his portraits. Close was born in Monroe, Washington in 1940, and attended the University of Washington where he received his bachelor’s degree in 1962. He continued his education at Yale where he was awarded his Masters in Fine Arts in 1964. After his studies, he went to the University of Massachusetts where he taught for three years before moving to New York City where he could concentrate more on his artwork.
Many of Chuck Close’s beginning works are large photorealistic portraits completed in black in white. He strove to shock his audience with the inordinate amount of detail in the faces of his subjects such as replicating pores of the skin and strands of hair. In the 1970’s he began to incorporate color in his work and in the 1980’s he began to play with abstraction. However, the most significant change to his style was not exactly intentional, when Chuck Close suffered the collapse of his spinal artery in 1988. This incident left him paralyzed with limited mobility in his upper body. In order for him to continue painting, he had to have someone attach paintbrushes with straps to his wrists and then move his upper body in circular motions. He began using a hydraulic lift that allowed him to move around larger pieces in his newly restrictive state.
Arguably, some of his best work sprung from this incident. Chuck Close redefined portraiture and he took his super realistic style and slightly abstract finger paintings to a whole new level. He began to grind off blocks on a canvas and then filled each block with rings of color which seem hap hazardously assigned, but a portrait reveals itself when viewed from a slight distance.
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| Big Self Portrait- Acrylic on Canvas This shows how detailed and photo-realistic Close was able to get prior of his accident |
I think that Chuck Close’s work is absolutely incredible. The ability to take such a life altering event and transform it into the something positive is a remarkable feat. He was able to use his limitations not to restrict his art, but to actually enhance it. I really like how his portraits capture everyday people, in their faces there is something that everyone can connect to. They are not always smiling or look particularly happy; they look genuine. They look like someone who you can meet on the street that you would normally just pass by, but their representation in this incredibly large and realistic or interesting depiction makes them uniquely remarkable and fascinating.
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| Self Portrait- This piece shows how his abstract side and grid work |
Chuck Close went from simply copying faces into representing someone more creatively, which shows his dimensionality as an artist. When he was given a hardship, he was able to take his creativity to a new level, and I really cannot think of any ways in which to make his work better. The concept of grid drawing is not novel, but the way in which Close handled the grids is so original and unique that I cannot think of anything that I would want to change about it.
I have always been a fan of Chuck Close’s, but when I was able to see his work up close in person I gained a completely new level of respect for what a remarkable artist that he is.
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