Motivated by the lack of women’s representation in the art world, and in homage to artists who
inspire her, Rebecca Campbell began painting portraits of women artists in Fall 2015, in her ongoing series You are Here. The first 18 paintings from this series will be installed in L.A. Louver’s second floor gallery, 13 January – 13 February 2016. 

“I am not interested in making very realistic depictions; I do not sort people out by what they make;
I just choose people who are serious, diligent, hard working, and good at what they do.”
– Rebecca Campbell 

Campbell makes each painting with the same dimensions (30 x 22 ½ in. [76.2 x 56.5 cm]), using paper that she primes with a custom pink acrylic paint. She then employs a limited palette of black, white, and gray to build the portrait. Although she approaches each work with identical parameters, Campbell imbues each portrait with a unique sense of identity, capturing their likeness with bold and gestural brushstrokes.

Each sitter meets the gaze of the viewer, with her strengths and vulnerabilities candidly conveyed. Beyond subject matter, these works are a celebration of painting itself, and the quality of imagery that can only be brought forth with paint and brush. As Campbell states, “I believe deeply in process being content.”

Rebecca Campbell: You are Here opens on Wednesday, 13 January, 6-8pm. Learn more about the artist here.

IMAGES: (left to right) Mpambo, 2015; Gwynn, 2015; and Patricia, 2015; each: (from the You are Here series), 2015, acrylic on paper, 30 x 22 ¼ in. (76.2 x 56.5 cm)