Dan Gluibizzi
May 6, 2019
Dan Gluibizzi makes work that recontextualizes internet photography into chromatic groupings of anonymous bodies and faces. The figures in his paintings appear self-possessed and unconcerned with our gaze. The eyes are handled as simple white ovals which, taken with the repetition of figures, emphasizes their anonymity, making them strangely familiar. Although the bodies are sometimes shown in states of longing or desire, the work is decidedly not erotic— instead calling attention to the variability of bodies and the humanness of desire.
All Elbows, watercolor and acrylic on paper, 2017
A couple kisses, acrylic and watercolor on paper, 2019
In A Couple Kisses (2019) we see twenty-four cropped pairs of kissers stacked in askew rows. The bottom of the composition is all cool colored jewel-tones, while the top glows with hot reds, oranges, and violets. It's a clever allusion to the way our hearts race and cheeks flush when we kiss.
Canoodling, acrylic and watercolor on paper, 2019
MFMF gray, acrylic and baltic birch, 2019
Friends and Strangers, watercolor and acrylic on paper, 2017
Friends and Strangers (2017) is a visual testament to longing and loneliness. It shows mostly solitary figures painted in shades of burnt orange and plum, on a washy olive background. The fifty anonymous figures hover in a loose grid like disembodied identities moving through the ether of the internet.
Our Dance, acrylic and watercolor on paper, 2019
Placeholders, acrylic and watercolor on paper, 2017
Placeholders (2017) shows us twenty-five individuals posing with blank white signs. It is at once an homage to the internet trend of posing with signs, a riff on virtue signaling, and a mirror for our own projections. The piece encapsulates the internet's insatiable need to churn through images, often misappropriating along the way. Indeed, Dan's paintings often call attention to "both the open possibilities and dark edges of online community life."
Wavepool, acrylic and watercolor on paper, 2018
Dan has work in a group show at Hashimoto Gallery this June, and a solo show coming to Russo Lee Gallery in September. Follow along on Instagram @dangluibizzi
