Fiona Dowdee - Contemporary Painter

     My artistic practice is most often large-scale oil paintings on canvas that demand attention from the viewer. I use oil paint to bring a classical style to my work. Each time I touch oil paint to canvas it is as if I am following in the footsteps of past artists. I use small soft brushes to create a thinness of paint that disguises the marks of the artist in favor of the subjects likeness. When painting I create an artistic rendition which resembles the subject as closely as possible, blurring the lines between art and life.

     I paint my friends and people who inspire me, the youth of today. I paint my generation in a realistic, bold, and confrontational way. The subject’s eye contact or lack thereof being the focal point of the composition.

 My generation has been called apathetic and selfish, a categorization that we prove wrong on a daily basis. This is why I portray the youth in a confidant pose with direct eye contact to rebel against these generalizations.

     I find that I can use portraiture, which traditionally has been a tool for the elite to show wealth and power, to create a juxtaposition between traditional styles and contemporary ideas: an adolescent subject that demands to be recognized and demands a future. The subject stares directly into the eyes of the viewer as if to defy their judgment. 

Contact Me

310-767-6310