Shaun Downey’s (b. Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, 1978) realist paintings frame the views beyond the periphery. His scenes—not quite portraits, not quite character studies—bring quiet to the chaos of our times while breathing new life into its colder corners. Downey’s tools extend well beyond the brush and palette: light, line and colour are the architectural supports for his primary medium, solitude. His subjects, alone but not lonely, seem to listen to and converse with the quiet around them. Wondering at the window, lingering at the mirror, gazing into the middle ground or yearning at a faraway horizon—these are the rare and elegant moments in which the spaces we’re in become precisely the spaces we need, honest vessels for self-reflection.
* This statement has been provided directly by the artist in association to their 16th International ARC Salon entries. This content has not been edited for typos or grammatical errors and has not been vetted for accuracy.