KAIROS

Imagine a contemporary artist whose giant portrait heads echo the painterly sophistication of Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud, while rivaling the existential weight of the Stone Monoliths of Easter Island.

You end up with Alexander Van Armstrong and almost no one else.

This School of London expressionist is best known for his eidetic portrayal of Mythological figures, and 20th century icons, often American.

These densely layered works are characterized by powerful paint handling, tempered by chiaroscuro and sfumato. They have nothing in common with Warhol’s portraits of celebrities, nor Chuck Close’s cautious photo realism.

Van Armstrong’s generally sympathetic treatment of subject matter reflects his allegiance to Old Masters like Masaccio. Influences include Ancient Greek tragedy and 19th century Romantic literature.

His occasional casting of real life people as mythological figures introduces an element of ambiguity.

Alexander Van Armstrong is an exact contemporary of Damien Hirst. Each helped to put London’s famous East End art colony on the map.

Both have a history with Charles Saatchi.

Whereas Hirst would embrace the advertising mogul’s patronage, Van Armstrong declined Saatchi’s offer to buy the contents of his last London show.

The artist already had a circle of wealthy patrons privately funding his work, and was not eager to be associated with Saatchi’s Young British Artists.

Arriving in New York in the early 2000s, Van Armstrong hit the ground running. Music mogul, Chris Blackwell gave him the use of a magnificent studio overlooking The Hudson. Film director Spike Lee was one of many celebrity visitors.

At 24 feet wide and 8 feet tall, The King Of Pain is one of the most extreme painting’s of our time. This is the painting that the artist declined to sell to Charles Saatchi.

The King of Pain reprises Francis Bacon’s adoption of the triptych format as a formal device, while preserving much of the poignancy of Bacon’s portraiture, but here on an astonishing scale - 100 times life size.

Like many of his works, The King of Pain reflects the artist’s obsession with the tragic-heroic mood suggested by Shelley’s famous sonnet, Ozymandias.

Spike Lee commissioned a giant portrait head of JOE LOUIS for his 2004 movie, SHE HATE ME, together with several smaller pieces. This kickstarted an ongoing 20 year artistic collaboration. The film director would also commission giant portrait heads of Jack Johnson and Muhammad Ali.

Fast forward 20 years, the same Joe Louis portrait wowed visitors to The Brooklyn Museum’s recent exhibition of Spike Lee’s art collection. The Guardian Newspaper singled out JOE LOUIS 2 as one of the highlights of the show.

Joe Louis 2 features in Lee’s latest movie, a remake of a 1960s Akira Kurosawa crime drama masterpiece, starring Denzel Washington.

While Joe Louis 2 is on the way to becoming an iconic artwork, it is merely the tip of the iceberg. Van Armstrong has produced a body of work that includes upwards of 20 equally breathtaking portraits.

Van Armstrong’s contribution to the art of portraiture massively re-affirms the continuing relevance of figurative painting, in the grand manner.

A penetrating but humane spotlight illuminates a diverse procession of Mythological figures and 20th century icons. Jack Johnson, Joe Louis and Muhammad Ali are portrayed as monumental beings pursuing transcendence at the intersection of History and Mythology.

The always somber Sonny Liston, recast as Ozymandias, makes his way to his doom.

In this eclectic parade they are joined by Achilles, Agamemnon, and Prometheus. Sir Winston Churchill, Mike Tyson and Albert Einstein join the procession. Mick Jagger brings up the rear. But he does not fade away.

Sebastian Ferretti
University of Chicago
October, 2026