“Ask the Sky” (2008) by Hernan Bas presents a wonderful example of the artist’s sought-after works on paper from his 2009 exhbition of the same name. Exploring the themes and ideas of Dandyism, Bas renders his archetypal male- describing the weak, vulnerable physical characteristics of the boy in the positive light of youth.

In paintings, works on paper, sculpture, video, and Installation, Miami-based Hernan Bas (Born 1978, Miami, FL) examines the historical, intellectual, and literary roots of Dandyism to address issues of identity in contemporary times. His works often take as their subjects major sources of historical painting-often biblical, mythological, or literary- to expound on the classical romantic themes of love and death. Infused with decadence in their imagery, technique, and surface, Bas’ works are fraught with an almost intoxicating emotion. The figures occupying his landscapes are subject to the surrounding nature, rendered either frail or intoxicated as a result of their interaction. In 2007, the Rubell Family Collection in Miami, FL, organized a major retrospective of Bas’ works, which then traveled to the Brooklyn Museum of Art in New York in early 2008. His paintings, drawings, sculpture, and installations can be found in many of the most well known public and private collections throughout the world, such as the Museum of Modern Art (NY), the Brooklyn Museum of Art (NY), the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (CA) ,and the Whitney Museum of American Art (New York, NY). His works have been exhibited in many prominent venues worldwide, such as the 53rd Venice Biennale (Venice, Italy), the 2004 Whitney Biennial (NY), the Shirn Kunsthalle (Frankfurt, Germany), and the Aspen Art Museum