Alex Barba’s mixed media paintings on canvas are a carefully rendered amalgamation of acrylic, oil, pastel, watercolor and charcoal. At once graphic and ethereal, Barba’s frequent use of high contrast black and white imbues his angelic figures with a soft glow which he emphasizes by diluting oil pigment to achieve a transparent and delicate texture. Interested in the definitive biblical moment in which Lucifer ‘falls,’ in his exploration of the topic Barba draws upon his rich Latin American heritage, particularly its enigmatic and mysterious spiritual influences. The results are riveting. His mighty contemporary ‘Angels’ hover at the border of spiritual purity and graphic humanity, suggesting that only through communion with our dark edges can we truly advance to the celestial plane. It is there, the artist believes, that ‘everything happens at infinite levels with infinite beings.’
Alex Barba was born in Mexico City, Mexico, where he currently lives and works. He has exhibited extensively in Mexico.