We just put up a post about Jacob Rolfe‘s clothing brand, Unimpressed / Print’d Cloth, and when I started to look more deeply into his creations, I found out that Rolfe is also an incredibly talented painter and illustrator. His work requires contemplation – he describes it as often depicting “intense metaphor,” and this is definitely the sense I get from his round, twisted figures with their hooded faces and misplaced genitalia. There is a lot of darkness in his inspiration – Death and the Devil loom large in his scenes, but they are playful in their macabre. There is a sense of humor in his work, which, combined with the obtuse meanings, leaves the viewer intrigued but slightly uncomfortable. His painting style is colorful but deeply shadowed, giving the nude bodies and expressive beings that populate his canvas a profound dimensional existence. I can imagine walking into this world, sitting in silence as Rolfe’s inhabitants go about their grotesque dance. His illustrations, especially his color illustrations, have an almost childlike quality to them; in fact, as I was pulling image for this post and thinking this thought, my 1 year old daughter (who has grown up with and appreciates demented imagery) saw one of Rolfe’s figures on my screen and shrieked with delight. I showed her a few more, all evoked the same joyous reaction, maybe that’s a market he should tap into? Well, for my kids anyway! He is already producing zines of his artwork, and published three in 2011, “Myopic Future,” “Life on Earth” and “Humans Lay Eggs,” so can I put in a request for a kids zine dedicated to Sinead “CVLT” Sunshine? After the jump, check out a large gallery of Rolfe’s artwork, but trust me, there is so much more to see on his website and blog…
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