OTHELLO DE'SOUZA-HARTLEY
2021
Oil and Acrylic on canvas
25x20cm (Unframed) 
 
The paintings draw inspiration from architecture with their structured forms and lines, yet embrace the skin texture, mimicking the intricate patterns and imperfections, found on the skin surface. Mark-making is central to the composition, each stroke and incision reminiscent of scarification, telling a story of identity. The process of creating these paintings is akin to meditation.
 
Othello De’Souza-Hartley is a mixed-media artist who explores aspects of human expression in contemporary society. 
Applying minimal gestures to maximum effect, De’Souza-Hartley merges personal experience into visual investigations of prevailing quandaries and contradictions. Working predominantly in photography, moving images, drawing, performance, and painting, the human body is at the core of his practice, either directly as a subject or indirectly via the marks and layers applied to canvas. 
Inspired equally by the subjective gaze of classical paintings and notions of non-duality in Eastern philosophy, by the geometry and texture of Modern architecture and improvisation in experimental music or contemporary dance, De’Souza-Hartley’s practice is not confined by medium or genre. 
Prior to receiving an MA in Fine Art from Camberwell College of Arts, University of the Arts London, in 2011, he studied at Central St Martins, University of the Arts London, and at the Royal Drawing School, London.