Robert Bunkin
The human figure, and the portrait in particular, have fascinated me since childhood. I'm primarily a painter who dabbles in sculpture. The artists' community in Long Island City has lured me back to Queens, the borough of my childhood.
Mostly I paint my friends, other artists with whom I share an interest in the figure. Often I pose for fellow artists in exchange for their posing for me. This has been an extremely productive way of obtaining models, and helping fellow artists. I've also begun a series of "portraits" of sculptures that speak to me, some I find in museums, others I borrow from collectors.
Generally I prefer to work directly from life, without the intervention of photography, but when I must rely on photographs I try to paint as if I'm confronting the actual motif.
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