Todd White
Hands are a focal point for Todd White, reflecting the subject's state of mind almost as much as facial expressions. "Everyone's hands are full of personality" he suggests, noting for example, how powerfully and expressively the small hand details and gesticulations will amplify an actor's performance.
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Todd White has become one of the major players in the world of contemporary art. At face value, the pieces appear as simple caricature. Contorted body shapes and exaggerated expressions expose a past in cartooning and animation; the perfect place to develop the skills to understand character from a simple look, or simulate body language with utmost economy. This has been the backbone of Todd White's art. Life experience and adventure (and misadventure) are written on the faces and hands of the subjects. Bodies are frozen in a single moment.
While Todd White's art is ensconced in Los Angeles society, drawing the interest of the Hollywood A-list, the characters are familiar to all of us. Todd's work pokes fun at human conceits, yet reminds us that we all have similar failings. These personalities are universal, and suddenly they become more defined; these stylised humans press themselves into our world. This ability to tell a story with colour and shape has attracted not only celebrity collectors, but also high profile commissions. Todd White is the official artist for the Grammy Awards, and is more recently providing work for the Princess Diana Memorial Foundation.
The Enid Hutt Gallery has a selection of limited edition of hand embellished and silk screen prints, each one a slice of Todd White's view of the world. Pieces such as 'Caffeine', brimming with energy and humour, demonstrate perfectly the stimulant fuelled world we live in. The characters signature bruised knuckles, a motif of Todd White's art, fold around coffee shop chain cups. Shrinking, unfocused pupils pop out of grinning faces, struggling to keep up with the modern world.
Another group piece, 'Writer's Block' is a wonderfully funny study of the world of the freelance writer, perhaps a little cruelly implying how they undertake their research. 'Hard Candy' demonstrates the power of overt sexuality. The girl is provocative and seductive; a recurring subject of Todd White's art, but there is an awkwardness that comes with youth. This awkwardness is prevalent in Lemons, Blueberries and a Hardwood Floor, but perhaps the girl in this piece has more of a past, her history opening up before us on her face and hands.
So many stories, so many characters, told with wit and energy. This is Todd White art.