BENHANZIN HOSSU-BOWELLE

Artist Statement

I am an abstract painter and also an accomplished photographer. It may be that this immersion in dual mediums influences my unusual approach to both. Due to my unique vantage point when photographing everyday objects, each is imbued with significance as standalone contributors to the natural world, but my paintings further transform them, envisioning how they might manifest in a different dimension once given color and alternative form. While this might suggest an association with abstract art, it is my ability to see objects differently and create a unique representation of each which is the hallmark of my work. The palettes, which I mix myself, consist of color combinations rarely utilized by others. While Initially an Intentional signature, this approach Is now deeply permeating within my dynamic style of painting. My influences are as varied as life Itself which creates a deeply personal aspect to my art.

While my work originates within an abstract perspective, both paintings and photographs rely heavily on the subtleties of color to deliver impact. The shapes are unusual, the photographs creating their own borders within a frame, while the paintings rely on carefully handcrafted canvases to express their individuality. These may include hard edges, circles, and sometimes small paintings within paintings. I may work from a drawing done to scale or draw directly on a surface and immediately execute that image. Each work seems to birth another, resulting in the creation of a series or clusters of works which may share theme, but not likeness. My paintings seem to have a mystic force of their own, capturing and freezing a flash of emotion like a camera, but the lengthier time to complete a painting give opportunity for a greater range of emotional content. The paintings appear like abstract color jewels which have fallen from the cosmos like comets or shooting stars - messengers from otherworldly places where my mind's eye truly lives.