William Daniels (artist)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
William Daniels (born 1976, Brighton, UK) is an artist based in London.
He has shown work in many exhibitions including “Waste Material” at The Drawing Room [1] in London, “The Darkest Hour” at Leisure Club Mogadishni [2] in Copenhagen, “William Daniels” at Marc Foxx [3] in Los Angeles and “William Daniels & Fiona Jardine” at Transmission Gallery [4] in Glasgow. He is represented by Marc Foxx in Los Angeles and Vilma Gold [5] in London.
William Daniels makes traditional-style oil-paintings with a twist – his subjects are not real people or landscapes, they are all made out of card and paper. Daniels treats his hand-built figures and settings just like real-life sitters and his paintings are impeccable copies of his delicate tableaux. With subjects including knights, nudes, nature and history, Daniels takes his lead from classic romantic and religious paintings, remodelling them for his own ends. In effect his small canvasses are fourth generation copies – a painting based on a model, based on a much older painting, based on the original artist’s inspiration. While this may seem a cynical comment on the post-modern notions of originality, Daniels’ work comes across more like a lament for a time long vanished; his meticulous dedication to detail and faithful recreation of the past appears sincere in its admiration. Though creating his models out of contemporary rubbish – litter, old boxes, cigarette papers – Daniels’ paintings transform these forgotten roots into items of luxury and preciousness with an air of nostalgic authority, bestowing a sense of determination and permanence his materials are never otherwise allowed.
