Pastels

Born in 1961 in West Bend, WI, Charles Dwyer graduated Valedictorian from the Milwaukee School of Art & Design in 1984. He enjoyed early recognition when the West Bend Art Museum exhibited his work 1985. This success led to further exposure and exploration. Soon his creative passion led him to Europe where he was influenced by Egon Schiele, an Austrian painter and a teacher of Gustave Klimt, and by Sonia Delaunay, a French painter whose palette affects art and design to this day. Other influences from this journey included Alexei Jawlensky, a German expressionist from the Der Blaue Reiter group (including Kandinsky, Franz Marc, and August Macke) and Matisse. It was during this trip that Dwyer developed his fascination for the Expressionist movement, the decorative arts, and restoration– all elements which were to be influential in the development of his own unique vision.

Dwyer achieved immediate success when his first one-man show in New York at the 1992 Art Expo sold out. This was followed by further success at the 1993 Chicago Art Expo, and subsequent New York Expos. He soon developed an enthusiastic following throughout North America where his work is avidly collected. During this time, as well as working on his own creative vision, Dwyer has used his skills working for the renowned Wisonsin restoration firm, Conrad Schmitt Studios, to restore landmark historical locations, from a dome in the Cathedral of Notre Dame, Indiana to the murals of the Waldorf Astoria, NYC. In a symbiotic relationship, Dwyer has taken the skills learned from this experience and applied them to what has been his signature portraiture work.

Dwyer’s style mixes a strong abstract and design foundation with minutely and sensitively observed figure studies. Fascinated by the complexities of both the human form and the human mind, Dwyer finds inspiration for his art in the simplicity of the face, and expands on that in his love for doing portraiture. In the end, Dwyer’s women are beautiful, enigmatic, colorful, reflective, inviting, dazzling, but always just beyond our reach.

Typically, to arrive at his finished works, Dwyer positions his model within a complete tableau, which includes costume design; make up, backdrops and props. He then captures the image using a camera with a 6” x 7” or 4” x 5” frame . This is the starting point for an individual & idiosyncratic exploration of the image in which color, pattern, and art historical and pop culture references are combined with Dwyer’s exquisite drawing skills.

Dwyer is accomplished in a variety of media, but often works in pastel because of the directness and spontaneity it allows him. By combining pastel with collage and other mixed media Dwyer creates images with both literal and figurative layers. These pastel and mixed media drawings frequently provide the starting point for larger oil paintings, which enlarge and expand the drawings onto a more monumental scale. Skilled as he is in many areas of the creative process, Dwyer admits that drawing remains closest to his heart. According to Dwyer: “Drawing is the foundation of everything. It’s kind of primal.”

Dwyer's recent Moulin Rouge studies further confirm his love for the applied arts, textile, costume, and theatre. Inspired by Mario Marini etchings and the Russian costume designer, Leon Bakst, Dwyer's Moulin Rouge series celebrate the color and movement of costume through watercolor and etching. Segments of fabric are often sewn onto the paper and patterned paper maybe added through collage. The paper is treated by staining and manipulating to give it an aged effect. These images also illustrate the influence of the Bauhaus plays, which were considered avant-garde.

The Moulin Rouge studies integrate Dwyer's interest in Russian costume design, his restoration experience and his photography. He hopes to one-day produce a theatrical performance, using these creative works- A present day Charles Dwyer production, Moulin Rouge - choreographed with music, performance art, models, and fashions taken from his studies.

Artist Interview Feb 2005:

“Drawing is focus of my work the foundation, my favorite part of the work. Likes the subtle feel of pencil or pastel on the paper, the friction that occurs. The pastel is immediate, and spontaneous not like waiting for paint to dry. Over planned work becomes boring I like to be surprised. I never work from a live model for my portraits. I always use photos. I pre-prep the paper first with an abstract approach doing layers with the patterns first. Some of the patterns are from an old book I found with b & w designs, I like the liner element. I have worked for Conrad Schmitt for 20 years now which has greatly influenced my work to date.

There is a narrative that occurs, but then he wants to allow the viewer to make a decision on how to interpret it. It is more autobiographical vs. interior. Women are my subject; the eyes are the focal point. I want to create an intimacy where the portrait may remind them of themselves or they may get an immediate feeling they are allegorical. They are not someone specific. am borrowing ambiguous images from these photos and put my drawings together that way. The images are icon like; larger than life I love the 30 x 40 size or larger. I feel my work can’t be copied. This is what creates a signature artist. I keep my work partly in the style of traditional drawing, and then allow the work to become funky, I don’t want the work to be too serious. I feel most traditional work is ego driven and boring. I want to create a look that is inviting or provocative. I like the magical, and fantasy aspect. The young women show an element of innocence and are an angelic something we can hold on to. I love the beauty of women. Working in churches doing restoration for 20 years on angelic and cherub figures have influenced me greatly. But the modern angelic figure is also mischievous, venerable and innocent.”

Charles Dwyer’s work can be found in many private collections throughout North America and in the permanent collections of the following public & private museums, religious & academic institutions:

Wisconsin State Capital - Milwaukee , WI Pfister Hotel - Milwaukee , WI

All Faiths Chapel - Boystown , NE Egyptian Theatre - Ogden , UT

Minnesota State Capital - Minneapolis , MN IXL Historical Museum - Hermansville , MI

Pabst Brewery - Milwaukee , WI St. Louis Union Station - St. Louis , MI

St. Patrick's Church - New Orleans , LA LA Orpheum Theatre - Phoenix , AZ

Holy Ghost Church - Kula, Maui , HI St. Bernard's Church - Akron , OH

Geary Theatre - San Francisco , CA Stone Manor - Lake Geneva , WI

University of Notre Dame - IN St. Louis Cathedral - New Orleans , LA

Cathedral of the Assumption - Louisville , KY Hawaii Theatre - Honolulu , HI

St. Mary's Church - Victoria , TX St. Josaphat's Basilica - Milwaukee , WI