Lazzari Art House is pleased to announce “Imagining the Present”, an exhibition of new paintings by Xander Coy, opening at our private space on Thursday, September 28. This is the artist’s first exhibition with Lazzari Art House and his first in Luxembourg.
Drawing inspiration from Pop Art and Surrealism, Xander masterfully merges an eclectic array of visuals, ranging from vintage 1950’s posters to contemporary cartoons. Within this artistic blend, he skillfully addresses the challenges posed by today’s consumer culture, paradoxically presenting viewers with both an enigmatic puzzle and a guiding path through his visually arresting conundrums.
Unfolding through intricate layers of collage and acrylic paint, his paintings offer a glimpse into an ever-shifting state of being. The fragmented objects and gestural figures come alive on the canvas, utilizing semiotics and collage to expand and elongate time in a world where everything seems immediate and condensed. This artistic technique subtly reshapes our perception of time, fostering a dynamic evolution as we immerse ourselves in the quest for new meanings.
In this highly engaging artistic dialogue, Xander invites the viewer to delve into contemplations of escapism, yearning, vulnerability, transience, and beyond. “These new paintings are all loose narratives where the viewer is given a world that they are able to remake or reimagine. They can join up the dots for themselves. The idea of art is to stimulate your own imagination and the compositions are purported towards
that belief.”
Xander’s work not only raises thought-provoking questions but also orchestrates an exploration of contemporary sensibilities, presenting a fresh and compelling perspective on visual, cultural, and commercial icons. It encourages us to reflect on how we respond to the ever-evolving world that surrounds us by questioning as it answers, and answering with more questions. “This collection of works are a distillation of the storm of multimedia imagery that we are subjected to in today’s modern world. Each composition is created from the ever changing snapshots that we are continually bombarded by whether that be on our phones, in the news or on tv.”
Working across various mediums each image he crafts bursts with an interplay of contrasting colours, intricate patterns, varying scales, light and shadow. Xander’s use of a hot or cold palette, or sometimes both, surprises and entices, generating vibrant harmonies through daring chromatic extremes. In this realm, colour reigns supreme—a constant source of pleasure.
Having studied drawing and painting at the Slade School of Art, Xander has shown his work at a number of galleries across the UK including Jealous Gallery and Saatchi Gallery. Working from his hometown London, Xander continues to exhibit across the UK and beyond.
Carla Lazzari