Origins #2
Nerdrum: An Enigma,oil on linen
The work of Thomas Insalaco shares this preoccupation with his artistic forebears. In Tom's heavily symbolic and, at times, autobiographical paintings and drawings, the art of the past is a living presence. Through his astounding technical virtuosity, he incorporates allusions to the styles and subjects of past masters.
But his incorporation of the past is never as mere imitation. It is, rather, an act of homage: both a recognition of the claims which his cultural inheritance places upon him and an assertion of his independence from these claims. For this artist, true originality begins with an understanding and assimilation of what went before.
21st Century Art Student, oil on canvas
Separation, oil on canvas
Adam and Eve on W. 57th Street, oil on canvas
Two Circles for Rembrandt, oil on canvas
Look and Remember, oil on canvas