New York based artist Logan Hicks surpasses the standard stencil art concept with his uniquely intricate images. Though created with stencils, he is able to achieve the subtlety of color, light and gradients in his otherwise bold and geometric works. We’ve previously featured his work on our blog, and soon in Vol. 37, where we take a closer look at his mastery of stenciling. Now exhibiting at 1am Gallery in San Francisco, Hicks’ latest series also achieves a painterly quality with haunting details. The series addresses subjects of death and mortality, inspired by classical painting, sculpture and photos that he took at the Paris Catacombs in France. The catacombs were once a pell-mell bone repository and today they are a curiosity, famous for their stacking of skulls and femurs into decorative patterns. Skulls are prevalent throughout the series, a common symbol of death but treated with visual appeal. Hicks has often studied the good and bad sides of his subjects. In his reinterpretation of Hans Membling’s “Earthly Vanity and Divine Salvation”, for instance, he updates the original which contrasts earthly beauty and luxury with death and hell. It features a nude standing in the middle flanked by Death and the Devil, each with an admonitory banner. The texts refer to the end of mankind and the way to its salvation. This offers another perspective of Hicks’ more signature images of urban environments. Dramatically-lit empty streets suddenly take on more allegorical meaning, evoking the ‘tunnel experience’ that takes place near death. Take a look at more of Hicks’ latest works below, now on view at 1am Gallery through October 21st.
