Painter Gerald Lovell started his career after dropping out of his college graphic design program. He is entirely self taught using his own research, YouTubing and the support of his close peers. His work references a diverse cadre of artists and over the years has been able to hone in on his unique form of expression. He creates portraits of connections ranging from acquaintances to the occasional stranger. Capturing their likeness in a photo and translating it to a canvas. His subjects are adorned with daubs of oil using the impasto technique. Their bright pupils gaze emphatically through the canvas while the seemingly mundane & surreal backgrounds set them into a reifying reality. His paintings are an expression of self-discovery, and self-articulation, and an archive of the experiences of his peers. He considers painting a spiritual practice through routine and tradition; he is building a body of work that profoundly encapsulates the experiences of black millenial youth, relics of the time.
Gerald is Chicago-born, raised in Atlanta and currently living in Brooklyn. The basement of his apartment he uses entirely as his studio. Welcoming me into his dimly lit area spotlighting a still life where we chatted as he worked on the new painting. He has been living in Brooklyn since July, saying it was always his goal to move to New York. His Grandma and mother are from Taino Towers in Washington Heights, a well known NYCHA building complex. He reflected on his fond memories of uptown Manhattan as a child. When his Aunt moved to Atlanta his mother followed where he was raised for the majority of his life. Gerald seems to have found another home in New York and has embraced his new surroundings by diving into his work.
I inquired about a hanging painting, a work in progress clearly depicting the start of a driver's license. This happened to belong to his late father, the only item belonging to him that Gerald owns. We spoke about forgiveness and the internal journey of reaching a place that welcomes forgiveness. His high threshold of forgiveness and understanding is expressed in his work through self awareness and the stories being told in his paintings. He spoke about his emotional connection to his work and his constant effort to uphold the utmost respect of his practice. How he holds himself at a certain standard of the love for his subjects and his practice. Gerald’s artistic integrity, unique form of expression, self awareness and the context of his work will continue to propel him into the spaces he always was intended to be.