Wesley Eberle - Artist on Hydra Island Greece

I’m not interested in abstraction as reduction. I’m not interested in taking things out, I am interested in putting things in – emotion, drama, anger, pain, love.

Eberle’s work is characterised by an intense abstract expression of the human form and human emotion. Eberle explores the interactions of form and feeling - those that are perceived and those that are performed, the unknown and the known, the hidden and the overt. His abstract work can take on sculptural qualities, while figures are often seen in various stages of growth, adaptation and change.

Born in the rural American Midwest, Eberle is a self-trained artist who draws on the vibrant colours and textures of his upbringing and those of his extensive travels. He is based between his studios in London and the Greek Island of Hydra.

In his own words

I want to create a wall of colour. Not a barrier, but one that invites you in, that moves towards you in its entirety as it draws you in. One that is sculptural, enticing you to explore, to feel it, to move around it.

I’m not interested in abstraction as reduction. I’m not interested in taking things out, I am interested in putting things in – emotion, drama, anger, pain, love.

For me it is the paint that is the subject. And when the paint is the subject, you have to demand a lot from it. It needs to interact within itself, with colour and movement competing for primacy.

My work often comes from one passing image, from one emotion. I want to put that into the canvas. Like a song, viewers will take away what speaks to them. Painting is not didactic. It’s about curiosity and being present.

A central theme of my work is communication. What we tell others, and why. How we project and how we receive. What we tell ourselves, and how we shape and change our memories and our pasts. The narratives we create in the present and how they dictate our future. Our brittle relationship with time and how we face our fears and anxieties. These questions are also often reflected in my titles. Who is the speaker? Should you feel empathy, concern, voyeurism?

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