A. Andrew Gonzalez
A. Andrew Gonzalez achieves a sculptural look by airbrushing acrylics onto gesso panels, then lifting pigment with an abrasive eraser. This is followed by the application of transparent layers of paint. In darker sections, he may repeat these steps many times over. Claybord provides the best surface for this technique, but on rare occasion, the artist will use canvas.
Each meticulously crafted painting can take many months to complete. The level of detail often requires Gonzalez to wear a magnifying visor.
His final pieces are a combination of pre-planned and spontaneous forms, the latter discovered as his eraser technique reveals hidden designs.
Influenced by idealism in the mystical, visionary and esoteric traditions, Gonzalez’s work is contemporary tantric or transfigurative art that explores the dramatic union of the sensual and spiritual. His work is akin to a revival of classical neo-platonic ideals centering on the figure as both temple and vessel, sublimed by transformative forces. His best known piece is Unio Mystica.