The Dark Saints of Kris Wlodarski |
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While there are certainly sexual themes in the paintings of Kris Wlodarski, I would be reluctant to call the works erotic. Instead I find his paintings a challenge to the viewer, mixing themes of vulnerability, fetish, isolation, dependency, and blindness with a religious undertone. But then again, since when has edgy and challenging not been associated with the darker side of erotic? To be sure there is something slightly uncomfortable about these dark alien figures. They do not seem happy or sad; they simply seem to exist in their perpetual blindness. And where there is a manifestation of the erotic through the use of rope, gags, medical equipment, or gas masks it seems to serve more as a way to further isolate these figures rather than to bring them closer or make them more accessible. Still, Wlodarski has a knack for delving into these dark and haunted places and I look forward to seeing how he continues to develop and push this theme. Article by Kayla
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