William Bennett Gallery - Steve Cieslawski

About the Artist

Steve Cieslawski

Many of the elements in my paintings pertain to the journey of the individual from life to death and, symbolically, the growth of the psyche through rising states of consciousness. I’m interested in the world of our own created reality as opposed to the existing reality created around us.

It’s a beautiful and somewhat amusing view of the individual quest for answers and that relationship with the collective unconscious. I find this fascinating, inspiring and also quite comical. My most successful work is in the balancing of these ideas.

I use a variation of the technique of the 17th century Dutch Master, Johannes Vermeer. Each painting is done with many glazes of different colors. The effect is one of light traveling through perhaps 20 layers of glazed pigment and bouncing back through layers to form an inner light source. Every inch of the canvas is meticulously painted so that each day, with the changing light, the viewer will invariably see something new and different.

“I recently viewed some paintings by the American artist, Steve Cieslawski. I’m not sure if he’s a surrealist or a symbolist, or both. But boy, can he paint.” -Teresa del Conde, Director, Museum of Contemporary Art in Mexico City

“With a fine-pointed brush dipped in liquid light, Cieslawski layers translucent glazes with the clarity of a Flemish master...
“That he can guide us through a tour of the hidden psyche so convincingly in our present, skeptical century makes his accomplishment all the more remarkable..."
-Gallery and Studio Magazine

Sable Mouvant (1966)
Published by Louis Broder, Picasso illustrated these etching and aquatints as homage to the fascinating poem by Pierre Reverdy. Sable Mouvant (quicksand) is set in the desert and relates to a number of psychological struggles and hallucinations. The works by Picasso elegantly depict Reverdy’s intentions and remove the viewer from reality to expose the inner turmoil of a helpless man and his surroundings. Examples of this suite can be found in the Picasso Museum, Barcelona.

Le Cocu Magnifique (1966)
Le Cocu Magnifique (The Splendid Cuckold) is an illustration of the 1921 play by Belgian playwright and friend of Picasso, Fernand Crommelynck. The title refers to the cuckoo bird female who commonly lays her eggs in other nests and the play revolves around the tribulations of love and adultery. These works divulge in Picasso’s use of erotic sequences; making use of his dramatic line and mastery of aquatint. Consistent with many works in his later years, we often see reflections of an autobiographical quality within the suite.