Tanyss Horsley

Home: Toronto, Ontario
Title: Almaz
Media: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 45 x 37 cm
Instagram: @tanysshorsley

ARTIST STATEMENT

I like people and psychology. While I enjoy painting many genres, I love the opportunity to work on a portrait, to study the physiognomy and to try to understand how the interplay of features show the character of a person. I endeavour to have the portrait communicate something to the viewer, to be “alive” whether it’s to draw you into contemplation or introspection or meet you face to face.

This young man’s profile evoked a dreamy, calming and introspective feel to me. I painted him on a simple imprimatura (toned canvas) with subtle and textured layers focusing on the delicateness and strength of his profile. His character is at once soft and strong. The portrait intends to capture the space between youth and adulthood; looking back while moving forward.

ARTIST BIOGRAPHY

Tanyss Horsley is a Toronto based oil painter who enjoys portraiture first and foremost. After living and studying in Florence, Italy and Nice, France she has dedicated her time to improving her skill with practice and study. She draws inspiration from some of our great Canadian painters such as Helen McNicoll and the Beaver Hall painters and has rich experience in the Venetian method. Bringing sitters to life with colour, brushstrokes both precise and loose, Tanyss approaches each sitter with variation of technique which best suits the subject. What is consistent in her portraits is the mood and feeling of the subject. She works in all genres but portraiture remains the top source of inspiration. Her love and connection with people meshed with traditional craft and psychological interpretation communicate and invite the viewer into contemplate the human condition.

She is a co-founder and instructor at the Academy of Art Canada in Toronto.

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