Artwork Description
Drew Tal – Bliss
Dimensions: 44.5 x 38″ finished size / 44.5 x 38″ unframed
Year: 2000
Medium: fine art print on canvas
Edition: 1/7
Drew Tal’s, “Bliss,” addresses both a foreign and personal understanding of religious belief, tied into traditional practices of yoga and meditation. The work is inherently psychological, describing a sensory experience rather than a material moment. “Bliss” describes a moment of self-reflection, encounters with a suggested higher order, and mental oblivion. The Buddha-like figure in the background of the piece transcends temporal contextualization by referencing historical depictions of the religious leader seen in both texts and architectural sites. Drew Tal grew up in the Middle East in the 1960s in the early stages of Israel’s statehood, granting him exposure to a cosmopolitan mix of cultures, races, and languages. Tal’s adolescence and encompassing environment have since provided the driving subject matter for his works and informed his artistic process; much like the cultural collage of his past, Tal uses collage-esque techniques in his work to layer photographs and painting in a contemporary and highly personal hybrid. Tal’s work focuses on exploring the nuances and ways of life of individuals existing within cultures outside of his own, and combines a fascination with aesthetic beauty and cultural symbolism in his depictions of children and Islamic women. Through photography captured during his extensive travels, Tal uses the historical and cultural significance of textiles juxtaposed before the powerful and direct gazes of his subjects’ insisting acknowledgment and a reconsideration of previously established biases. Through his work, Tal celebrates diversity within modern life and the ability to transcend racial boundaries through visual, non-verbal mediums. Tal’s work has been shown in numerous, renowned galleries around the world, in locations such as New York, Lille, Toronto, and Santa Fe.