Winged Figure in a Vortex

As the descriptive title suggests Winged Figure in a Vortex depicts a winged figure caught in a web of jagged, swirling and threatening abstract forms that make up the dark outside perimeter of a vortex. Mingling with the abstract forms are fleshy-pink colored intestines that stream from the figure's abdomen. The forms twist, turn, spiral and recede down into the vortex where they fragment and dissolve into the distant center hidden behind one of the figure's wings. The figure is headless and bluish-gray in color. This, along with his broken bones, open wounds, flayed skin and decaying flesh, suggests he has endured a multitude of physical abuses. One hand, a foot and the torso are bound by ropes and are pulled in different directions by a demonic figure that remains unseen except for a single clawed hand rising from below. And even though the pulled ropes makes the figure twist into a distorted position he has still managed to extend a lifeless arm in an attempt to grasp a glowing figure eight.

Winged Figure in a Vortex was painted during a transitional period between my earlier abstract work and subsequent representational work. The transitional period is mainly characterized by the incorporation of a figure, or figures, into a world of abstract forms. These characteristics can be seen when comparing Winged Figure in a Vortex to my 1985 canvas Dark Vortex. Dark Vortex uses the vortex composition to figuratively pull the viewer into the painting while Winged Figure in a Vortex literally includes a figure in order to represent the viewer being pulled in. So instead of the viewer feeling as though they are in the picture, threatened by the harshness of the jagged forms, and wanting to escape their threat by going into the transcendent space at the center, the viewer is now free to stand back to simply observe and empathize with the figure's plight.

Like Dark Vortex, Winged Figure in a Vortex uses a center-focused composition with a view toward a transcendent space beyond. Together they form a life-cycle symbol that references my major focus on the ideas of change and transformation. To enhance that sense of change and transformation I have also used a language of amorphous abstract forms that lack specific identities, exist on the edge of recognizability, and are often placed in fractured spaces that create a disjointed world full of movement – a chaotic world in flux.

When I look back at the work created during the transitional period, and at Winged Figure in a Vortex in particular, I see a richness of forms, a dynamic energy of execution, and a compositional complexity that reinforces the premise of exploring new ideas.

- Brian Mains, September 2019