Models have been of extreme importance to me. Their presence embodies narratives that transcend time and place. – Peter Liashkov Peter Liashkov is a raconteur who tells tales of the human condition, combining virtuosic drawing and painting skills with unflinching observation. Whether painting on glass or drawing on Synskin (a synthetic vellum), the use of real individuals as subjects is of critical importance to the authenticity of his work. El Camino College Art Gallery is proud to present Outside In/The Body Unearthed, recent works by Peter Liashkov. • Glass Portraits: oil on glass The portraits are, for the most part emotive and psychological in what they communicate about the subjects, while they simultaneously bear strong reference to religious iconography. Their effect depends in part on traditional expressionist devices of aggressive brushwork and strong or dissonant colors and in part upon non-traditional use of glass. • Large Scale Nude Portraits: 4’x 8’figures executed in charcoal, acrylic, pastel and powdered pigments on Synskin (a translucent fiberglass substrate) The stark frontality of these naked individuals, rendered against the monochromatic ground of the Synskin removes these humans from the annals of the everyday. Through exposure of the unique peculiarities of these people, devoid of earthly surroundings, Liashkov offers up portraits of great spiritual intensity. Herein, both sitter and viewer are confronted with mortality and the eventuality of bodily decay. • Corpus Series: oil on Synskin adhered to steel panel In a series of glowing abstractions, the specifics of the human figure coalesce into bio-morphic form. These recent paintings reveal a new level of investigation seemingly less attached to the other and more directly about the fusion of physicality and spirit. • Campo Santo Series: (2005-06) In the Campo Santo Series, maps or blueprints of an Italian cemetery printed on watercolor paper are overlaid with line drawings of the human figure. Romantic in approach, these delicate drawings depict the relationship of human life, death and decay. SUSANNA MEIERS Curator El Camino College Art Gallery
PETER LIASHKOV
Old Man #2, Old Man #1, Old Man #3 2005 synskin
Old Man #2 2005 synskin	Old Man #1 2005 synskin
Old Man #3 2005 synskin	Woman: 21 1999 oil, charcoal, acrylic, powdered pigment, earth on Synskin
Woman: 24 1998 charcoal, acrylic, crayon, powdered pigment on Synskin	Man: 28 1999 charcoal, acrylic, pastel on Synskin
Corpus Series #5 2002 oil, acrylic on Synskin mounted on steel	Corpus Series #25 (El Lloron) 2005 acrylic, oil, pastel, mixed media on Synskin mounted on steel
Woman: 21 1996 charcoal, acrylic, crayon, pastel, on Synskin	Eyeless 2003 mixed media on Synskin
Man: 40 1982 oil, silicone, sand, acrylic, plastic, ssteel on glass	Man: 70 1997 charcoal, pastel, acrylic on pigment
Glass Heads 1999-2006 oil, silicone on glass
Camposanto Series V 2005 charcoal, pastel on paper
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