Instinctual Feast is the latest series by Tanmaya Bingham, comprised of five mixed-media works that explore the many facets and faces of human connection. Specifically, the series represents ideas of ecstasy, pining, pleasure, compassion, and lust – all intrinsic parts of a deeply personal yet universally understood experience.
The collage-like paintings depict surreal, almost theatrical scenes of people and animals indulging in delectable fruits or surrounded with halos, and other metaphors for the concepts and emotions we attach to love. Through her subjects, Bingham examines love and humanity from all angles – the pleasurable and painful, the mysterious and spiritual.
In her artist statement, Bingham says: “The portrayals of my subjects are a direct reflection of my fascination with the human condition. People and animals are often the focal point of my work and act as a beacon of familiarity for the viewer. They are frequently placed within a context that is otherworldly with an oblique or unusual frame of reference. Even though my artworks appear to have a photographic quality, they are hand drawn and painted. The realistic 3D elements are primarily rendered in colored pencil while the abstracted 2D elements are typically painted with acrylic.”
Tanmaya Bingham currently lives in Vancouver and Santa Fe. She has a Bachelor of Arts from Antioch University (Santa Barbara) and a Master of Fine Arts, Visual Arts from the Australian National University (Canberra). Bingham has also studied painting and art history in Florence, art and architecture in Paris, and 3D digital modeling and sculpting in London and Vancouver. View more of her artwork on her website.
The paintings of 