Using the compositional and structural layout to intensify the emotional subtleties of the scene, Hernan Bas creates a sense of longing and loneliness within a picturesque summer landscape. Delicately rendered in ink, Bas' lake setting serves as a vehicle for self-discovery. Here, the protagonist is emotionally and physically divided between the two sheets of paper. While half of the figure is seen actively diving into the water in the right frame, the left frame shows a lone, pensive face floating above the still water.

Paper size: 12 x 9 in. (each)
Framed size: 20.5 x 29.25

In paintings, works on paper, sculpture, video, and Installation, Hernan Bas (b.1978) addresses contemporary issues concerning identity by examining the historical, intellectual, and literary roots of Dandyism. His works often involve classical romantic themes of love and death, as inspired by the subjects of historical paintings. Infused with decadence, Bas’ works are fraught with an almost intoxicating emotion. Born in Miami, FL, Bas graduated from the New World School of Arts, Miami, FL in 1996. For his work, Bas has received Fellowships from the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture (1999) and Columbia University (2001), the 2002 Rema Hort Foundation Grant, and won a McCullough Award for Painting from the Cleveland Institute of Art. Recently, his work was the subject of solo exhibitions at Kunstverein Hannover, Hannover, Germany (2012); PKM Gallery, Seoul, Korea (2012); Lehmann Maupin Gallery, New York, NY (2012); Galleria Capricorno, Venice, Italy (2011); Peter Kilchman, Zurich, Switzerland (2011); and Victoria Miro Gallery, London, UK (2010). in 1999. In 2007, the Rubell Family Collection in Miami, FL, organized a major retrospective of his work, which then traveled to the Brooklyn Museum of Art in New York.

Selected Public Collections:

Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
Whitney Museum of Contemporary Art, New York, NY
Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, CA
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA
Museum of Contemporary Art, Miami, FL
Samuso: Space for Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea