Deadline to Apply: February 9, 2024
Upcoming Exhibition: Nov 14 - Dec 19, 2023
Sasha Kirby
87, 2023
Oil in Canvas
My art piece explores the passage of time through portraiture across generations.
This is the first portrait of a series of three, titled 87, 55, and 18. These 3 portraits will capture
my grandfather, my father and my brother in 2023 through oil paints. I painted a very simple
portrait in order to highlight features of the face which show age. Painting in oils allowed me to
examine texture, light, and emotion through paint.
This 2023 Creative Arts Microgrant allowed me to explore cross-generational relationships
through oil paint portraiture. In this time of post Covid -19 reflection where we examine the most
important aspects of our lives, I wanted to explore the complexity of family. While age might
feel like a barrier to familial relationships, connections between generations can be clearly seen
in one’s features, or expressions. I have been inspired by a number of contemporary portrait
painters including Jenny Saville, Amy Sherald, Aliza Nisenbaum and Jordan Casteel who use
large-scale figurative paintings to sensitively depict complex relationships.