Kai McCall Canada, b. 1968

The paintings of Montreal-based artist Kai McCall explore our enduring fascination with portraiture. Set in the present, the figures in his paintings engage with the past by taking on the colours and tones of Grand Manner painting. The play of light and shadow is treated differently from one painting to another, shifting from lighter tones to a deep chiaroscuro in the paintings set at night.

The influence of cinema is also apparent in these paintings, particularly in the tightly framed compositions. His recent paintings are set in bars, cafés and nightclubs. Places where people go to see and be seen. As we look at the subjects of these paintings, they look outside the frame of the canvas towards unknown spectators. Looking, seeing and viewing, both inside the canvas and out, are what these paintings are all about.

McCall has exhibited his work professionally for 27 years, with solo and group shows in Canada, France, the United Kingdom and the United States.