george rouy

ART

interview by OLIVIER ZAHM

at a time of renewed interest in figurative painting, young british artist george rouy explores body mutations and transformations of identity, moving toward a baconesque sexuality.

OLIVIER ZAHM — I love your paintings. They are mysterious, sensual, and abstract, but also figurative. They’re not easy to describe. What’s your starting point for a painting?
GEORGE ROUY — I normally have a collection of photos, of found images, stuff found on the Internet — poses or just certain types, like a tone — from which a work or a series of works can come.

OLIVIER ZAHM — And it always starts with a figure?
GEORGE ROUY — Not always. When I go into a studio, I have all the canvases set up, and then I attack them with paint. The start of it is quite impulsive and abstract — just to express myself within that frame…