Henry Fraser: Exodus

Exodus noun. a mass departure of people

When I start to paint, I go directly to the canvas. I have no sketches or photographs to refer to. I listen to music; sometimes to remove me from the conscious activity of painting and at other times to help me focus on what’s developing in front of me. I’m not at all interested in capturing the likeness of an individual or portraying the human figure accurately, but in conveying the mystery and transience of the human condition - making the invisible, visible.

Henry Fraser graduated from Edinburgh College of Art in 2001 with a degree in Visual Communication. He had his first solo exhibition with the Open Eye Gallery in 2005 and has exhibited regularly in Scotland since then. His emotive portraits do not attempt to portray the likeness of a sitter, but instead display the innermost sanctum of the individual’s soul or a relationship in a group. His insightful characters are recognisable by their small eyes and simplified bodies. Fraser’s honest and compassionate portraits draw the viewer in and lay bare the emotional fragility of humankind. His work is collected worldwide.