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David Freeman was born in Calcutta, India, in 1961, and moved to Britain in 1978. From 1981 he studied at Ealing College and upon graduating set up his own studio in London. For the next several years he was commissioned to do artwork for books, magazines, posters and greeting cards, but at the same time he continued with his own work exploring varied mediums including sculpture. Eventually, he came full circle to return to what had always been his favorite occupation, painting the human figure in oils. The treatment of his subjects show a deep understanding of the classical tradition. His figure's interplay of light and darkness is a modern version of Rembrandt's "chiaroscuro". His figures and faces have a luminescence found in the works of the late Italian Renaissance. The skin tones that he paints are as iridescent as those of Tintoretto. The detail with which he paints highlights the icon-like appearance of his figures. His subject is blended into his myriad of backgrounds as if frozen in time. His colors, deeply sumptuous with his frequent use of gold leaf, are derived from the Byzantine tradition of decoration. Freeman, not withstanding his classical background is culturally a contemporary. His faces and figures speak to the viewer from a standpoint in the vanguard of art of the late twentieth century. |