Kai McCall’s Enigmatic Narratives

Montreal-based Kai McCall’s languorous subjects always present a puzzle. “Like characters in a work of fiction,” he says, “the figures in my paintings confront challenges and conflicts as they navigate a variety of enigmatic situations and settings. I think of them as semi-autonomous individuals whose poses evolve as I paint them and who become defined by the eventual actions that they assume in a composition.” (Above: When You Know You’ve Been Taken, 2011, 52″ x 36 / Below: River Poets, 2012, 36” x 24)

“Despite the recognizable imagery and actions of the figures, the overall meaning of the work eludes us. The paintings read more like a work of fiction with the concluding chapters missing; we are conscious of a conflict developing yet the resolution remains suspended in time, the outcome ambiguous.” – Artist Statement

McCall’s oil paintings are influenced by the 17th Century Dutch genre: “Certain elements are rendered in the layered technique of the Dutch masters to create shimmering fabrics and transparent flesh tones.” (Above: Because of The Monkey, 2012, 36” x 24)

Above: Polynesia / Below: Woman in Possession of a Carp / End of Post: Always

Kai McCall received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Western Ontario. He is a three-time recipient of Canada Council Grants and has works in numerous private and corporate collections across Canada, the United States, the UK and France.  See more on his website, here.