~ Aphorisms, confessions & omissions (2020)


What is modern romance? Facebook statuses, thirst traps and the presentation of perfection via social media has shifted the boundaries between personal and private almost entriely. The eradication of face-to-face interaction and physical experience in a shared time have all but eliminated the space for intimacy to occur.

Building on the drapery paintings from the Repoussoir series, this new body of work pushes past the interplay of framing and narrative by flattening the picture plane, obstensively removing space; while also presenting a series of allusions to personal romantic experience. The works push back against surface encounters by featuring lush materials that beg for physical touch.

As the context has narrowed through her use of text that speaks to personal moments rather than generalised dramatic themes her choice of material and colour palette have expanded. The range of mediums and approaches reflects on the myriad ways we can experience love, sex and intimacy and emphasises how rich those experiences are by choosing materials and compositions that are baroque and exaggerated even on a very small scale. Even in the smallest moment we can create depths if genuine connection is present.



3 pieces from this ongoing series were part of the ‘Tough Love’ exhibition at Brunswick Street Gallery, Feb 2020.

above from left to right:
No guilt in gilt (painted, n.2)
80cm w x 107 cm h
Oil paint on canvas, unframed
2020

There’s confirmation in silence
(painted, n.1) 
80cm w x 107 cm h
Oil paint on canvas, unframed
2020

Tell me more  (painted, n.1) 
80cm w x 107 cm h
Oil paint on canvas, unframed
2020


below, a selection of photographic process works.






©2024 Caroline Esbenshade

caroline@cesbenshade.com
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Acknowledgement 

I acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the country on which I live and work and their connections to the land. I pay my respects to Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Indigenous peoples today.