Bello // Disegno // Invenzione @ the Gallery at Duende, April 2022

From the Introduction by Julia Skop, curator of the Gallery at Duende:

“There tends to be a sense of the eternal in Samuel’s portraits. The face, torso and/or hands are his chosen subjects. There are few accompanying props: bones, a nautilus shell, and a drawing compass have made the cut. Photographic overlays of sheets of bubbles, honeycombs, grass and clover are also present. The final layer of encaustic wax is ubiquitous in these works, and lends a soft, liminal presence. Sprinkled among the display of Samuel’s portraits are small, black and white Polaroids of Bello. They form a sort of punctuation, or phrasing as the viewer moves through the exhibit. The photos pull us back and anchor our attention to the fact that these are images of a very real and alive human.

Which brings me back to the relationship between artist and subject. Bello himself is an artist. Given the extensive body of work Samuel has produced, I can only imagine that the relationship between these two men has been informed by the act of portrait-making. Bello, himself, commented that to view all of the portraits in one setting had a “eulogizing” effect, as though he might have been recorded, remembered and honored, after his death. One cannot help but feel the respect and depth of connection Samuel has with Bello.”