Eric Gibbons is one of a community of artists reaffirming the power and sensuality of the classical male figure. His Box Series, now in it’s third year and comprised of 120 paintings, has undergone subtle changes and continues to mature.

Often mistaken for photographs, Gibbons’s paintings of the figure are rooted in line: his passion and focus while studying in Osaka, Japan from 1987 to 1988. His lines are layered and layered to create a kind of topographical map for the human body, then blended to create rendered flesh forms.

Looking closely, one can actually see calligraphy in the hair and areas of unblended texture, such as the Japanese character for “heart.” In Japan he studied both calligraphy and brush painting. He spent a whole month doing a dot, then the following month a dot with a flick, and a short line for the next month—all with a coin balancing on the top of the brush. He learned how to use his brush, one step at a time in the Japanese mode, and in the last 20 years he has translated this into his work in oil.

Gibbons does paint female figures but 85 percent of his work is of the male nude. It was not always this way; in the 90s he painted equal numbers of men and women and sold sketches on Ebay. Sales though of his male figures were four times stronger than those of female figures,and were bringing four times the price. Gibbons’s work has filled a great void in the market—high quality, classical male figures. Wonderful classical female forms fill galleries and the Internet, but finding the same in the male form is challenging. Thus began his conscious focus on male, and especially culturally diverse male images, to bring some balance to what is lacking in the world market.

In 2004 a vacation to Paris brought even greater focus to Gibbons’s work and style. Wan-dering the Louvre, day after day, he was transfixed by the master- works of the Neoclassical period, particularly the work of David, and also the work of Ingres. Sculpture placed in niches throughout the museum—contrasting architecture and the human form—generated a concept Gibbons incorporated into his work. Pull all that together and add a pinch of trompe l'oeil and you have the point of germination for Gibbons’s work.

Gibbons hopes to join the formalism and morality messages of the Neoclassical period with contemporary allegories, understandable to today’s viewers, yet still maintaining timelessness. He purposefully does not incorporate modern symbols such as cell phones and computers, so that the work can be viewed as decades or centuries old depending on the context.

Although his paintings are often sold one at a time, they are meant to be displayed in groups of two to 100. They are all lit from the left; so that no matter the space or arrangement, they are always cohesive. Like the Aids Quilt, a single painting can be touching and meaningful, but when seen with its counterparts, it takes on additional significance. Adjoining paintings influence the meaning of each work, like people in neighboring apartments. A figure listening to a wall could be paired with a figure playing music but would have a different context if paired with a figure screaming in agony. These pairings nudge meanings in a way few other artists attempt. This is a large part of what makes Gibbons’s work different and significant—his message is one of community, relationships, and associations.

Biblical, mythological, and societal themes give the work roots to which viewers can relate. Multicultural figures reflect the artist’s world travels and his intent to speak to a large audience. Viewers bring their own package of prejudice and background to their experience of the work, and Gibbons keeps his titles simple—Distracted; Troubled—leaving the work open for interpretation, introspection, or reflection.

Side-by-Side atypically shows two figures in the box. Most figures in the box are alone, but here we see a connection. It is sensual, simple, maybe even elegant in its understatement. Many viewers are touched by the purity of the moment, the connection of one to another without overt sexuality. The figures may be gay or straight, in the box it does not matter. Gibbons says, “My own interpretation is that one figure is imagining the other, but who is imagining who tends to flip-flop for me daily. I see a man alone who imagines a partner, a friend in his loneliness.”

Gibbons’s number one pet peeve is that viewers often dismiss his work as Photoshop blowups. It pains Gibbons that people think all facile figurative painters must be dead or something—it’s hard for viewers to believe a person can “do that.” “I employ many techniques to complete a painting. First there are hours and hours of sketches and plans even before a model visits. When the model arrives, I conduct a digital photo session for later reference, and make
preliminary drawings on canvas. Models pose in a real box that measures 3 x 3 feet. It is the only way to get the shadows and musculature correct.” Gibbons says.

Gibbons’s very first box painting, Blade, is in the collection of The Leslie/Lohman Gay Art Foundation—donated by the artist to commemorate the opening of the new gallery space. The Box Series has been featured in ARTnews, BLUE+ (Studio Publications), Stripped (Bruno Gmunder Press), Illustrations (Shiffer Publications), and on innumerable websites. His work has been uploaded to YouTube and Google Video, getting well over 15,000 visitors a month. Gallery representation continues to grow nationally and internationally—Paris, Provincetown, Palm Springs, Fort Lauderdale, New Hope, Pittsburgh, Manhattan, Asbury Park, Princeton, Philadelphia. His most recent exhibitions include moxie DaDA Gallery, Pittsburgh (Mar. 3–24, 2007), and the Seattle Erotic Art Festival (Mar. 16–18, 2007). Upcoming exhibitions include: Patrick's Fine Art, NYC (May 10–May 31), 7Arts Studio, Wilmington, DE (May 19–Jun. 9), San Francisco Queer Cultural Center (Autumn 2007).

To see Gibbons’s newest work go to www.firehousegallery.com/ info.htm or contact his studio directly at 609-298-3742 or e-mail LOVSART@aol.com.