Provenance: Private Collection, Manila

ABOUT THE WORK

The view of the male torso, angular from the front, recalls both Contemporary body casts and Classical sculpture from the days of antiquity. Bencab proclaims Classicism as a basic influence in his art. The almost textured quality of pencil in rendering the skin restates the aesthetic distance and restraint of Classical art, as it removes them from facile accessibility, but instead presents the body as an iconic subject for thoughtful contemplation. Bencab has always viewed the skin as an expressive surface — with or without tattoos, concealed under layers of imagery, or exploding outwards to reveal an inner world of fantasy and conflict. Bencab employs exacting Realism combined with a neutral palette. The delicate, supple tonal treatment of the musculature of both the figures highlight this work. There is an immediacy, a freshness, and an authenticity which art audiences find refreshing. The subtle atmosphere, taken with the general atmosphere of sexual frankness, unblinking Realism, and the formal posture makes this a painting of considerable force that goes beyond the simple rendering of the presence of the model. The viewer is contemplating almost as if at an altar, the male torso.