Stanislaw Jan Krakiewicz

Profile:

Stanislaw Jan Krakiewicz (Stas) was born in 1964 in Liverpool, England from Polish immigrant parents fleeing from persecution in the Second World War. He has history of painting stretching back fifteen years, which has evolved stylistically and passionately through his varying arts practise. Recently preferring to find inspiration from English Naïve art and Art Brute that has no need to show technical realism, with the belief that it gets in the way of the balancing act between concept, colour and form. He resolves his concepts through his fragmented dyslexic residual memory and revels artistically in its unexpected outcomes.

His paintings imitate traditional technical influence from past masters, using layers of glaze over an impasto surface creating a sumptuous texture. His mature style can be broken up into three distinctive themes: dwellings in sparse abstracted landscapes, primitive art reflecting on fatherhood and portraiture in the faux primitive manner.

The faux primitive paintings are an intimate look at a child’s/ naïve viewpoint, that is playful and in awe of the world surrounding it. The work takes it influences from days out at the zoo, the aquarium and at home as the artist reinvents his visual relationships with the help of his now 6-year-old daughter.

The House Work’s and now Ship paintings are an connected by the use of sky and land which reflect the connection with abstraction and colour fields and English Naïve art. The finished paintings are left with a freshness that reflects the influence of his faux primitive style. The paintings highlight the vulnerability of the structures in a sparse colour plane. The dwellings are an ongoing exploration based on the theme of homes that embraces Stas's interest in buildings.

The portraiture began by representing effigies of past and close friends and exploring self-portraiture in his new style. The poses are kept simplistic with the sitter confronting the viewer on a brightly coloured background. The portrayed often hold or stand by an artefact that reflect their character. The distortions of features support the paintings honest mannerism and are bereft of the traditional baggage associated with portraiture.