a 6t
o o N
tt L!
l a (, Z
C' 0_
a
-T=tKil'{*
=:*i;i!:ig==-
Af\i*
BY ABEL DELGADO
.F;
:ff,,,-9!"tio
n' oil on can-vas, 70 x 32
When you're in front of a Ma colm Liepke painting, it s a most
she's th nking-maybe she has tired of him and is focus ng her
impossible to not have an emotional response, lntensiry ll
seduct ve gaze on sorneone we can't see in the pa nt ng.
features a woman riveting you to the spot r,vith her stare, whrle
This focus on ernot onal content is clearly reminiscent of the
her hands are posed in front of her almost defensively, ls she
works of masters I ke Degas and Veazquez, among others, Not
inviting viewers in or warding ihem off? Alone Together shows
a surprise-these legends were Liepke's "teachers." His formal
a woman embraclng a man
who's staring off into space,
training at the Ad College of Design in Pasadena, California only
distracted-or maybe alienated-from her. ls it mornentary
lasted a year and a half. The school's emphasis on conceptual
dlstraction or a sign he's lost interest in her? ln Seduction in
ad didn't work for the young adist, who moved to New York
Blues and Greens, a couple lies in bed, The man is asleep, the
in the iate 1970s after dropping out, While working as a
woman isn't. Her expression is pensive but it's not clear what
commercial adrst to support himself, Liepke studied the masters
of f guratrve parnt ng in museums a l aroLrnd the city. " He earned
compositiorr from Degas, depict on of ernot on from Toulouse-
to be sriccessir both crt ca ly and commercially. The acpea of h s oantings stafts with his immense skil
.
Lautrec. flatness of magery from Japanese rvoodblock printers
readiy ev deni rn hls ush brushwork, compelling composition
and flesh tones from Veldzqaez, notes Steven Diamant of
and vivid pa etie, Yet sk I alone, as Diamant observes. "is empty
Arcadia F ne Afts rn New York City, wh ch represents Liepke.
and unsat sfyng. The power rn Lepke's paintngs comes
By
the 1980s, Liepke's commerctal work had made it onto
frorr the
v,ray
he uses this skil to "depict the entire spectrum
the covers of magazines like Time, Newsweek, Forbes and
of human emotion," explains Diamant. The ultrmate effect ls a
Sporls lllustrated, He turned to fine art full-time in 19BO and
feellng that each canvas is a glrmpse into the hidden emotional
hs
work rmmediately resonated with buyers: his first one-man
exhibition completely sold out. Srnce then, Liepke has continued
lives of the sublects, a meaningful moment that Liepke captures
as if he were a rovrng photojournallst lnstead of a painter.