XIAOLIN
Jesse Waugh
XIAOLIN
2015
Oil and acrylic on canvas
XIAOLIN is a portrait of painter Xiaolin Zhang, who is known for her extensive series of self portraits derived from selfies. My portrait of her is an exploration of Japanese flat-field illustration applied to painting, as well as a more or less inadvertent reaction to her extensive usage of images of herself as a primary motif.
There is a concept in European art which is called horror vacui, which translates from modern Latin to "horror of a vacuum", and which is defined as "a fear or dislike of leaving empty spaces, especially in an artistic composition".
The Japanese have historically chided themselves for not learning perspective in two-dimensional art until it was introduced to them by the West, but I think equal credit needs to be given to the Japanese for their mastery of blank space.