…and his portraits do the talking
Baltimore sculptor/painter (and erstwhile Rumba Club musician) Alex Queral takes an ordinary phone book and, using a sharp X-Acto knife and a pot of acrylic medium for detailing, carves something extraordinary out of it – portraits of famous faces. The Creative Alliance is currently hosting an exhibit of his mixed media work entitled “face|book” in its Amalie Rothschild Gallery through March 29, 2014.
In Laura Heyenga’s Art Made from Books (Chronicle Books, 2013), the author writes that “Queral literally peels away the pages of a book to reveal the portrait within.” Once the carving is complete, Queral then adds a black wash to enhance the features and seals the directory with acrylic to preserve the work.
Facebook Events Expert Amy Linthicum updates her status at Alex Queral’s “face|book” exhibit.
Thanks to a tip by Facebook Events Expert (and unabashed book lover) Amy Linthicum, Baltimore or Less was alerted to this fascinating exhibit and attended the opening night gala at the Creative Alliance, where two of Queral’s portraits featured Baltimore connections.
John Waters phone book portrait by Alex Queral.
Queral clearly has a nose for detail, as this closeup (with a hometown shout-out) of Mr. Waters’ schnoz illustrates:
Baltimore detail from John Waters’ nose.
The Bard of the White Pages, Edgar Allan Poe.
It’s a fantastic exhibit that’s well-worth checking out. Following are some more pictures from the exhibition.
R. Crumb portrait by Alex Queral.
Salvadore Dali portrait by Alex Queral.
Paging Dr. Gonzo: Hunter S. Thompson portrait by Alex Queral.
Nurse Ratched portrait by Alex Queral.
Lauren Bacall portrait by Alex Queral.
Jerry Garcia portrait by Alex Queral.
See also:
Altered books (Enoch Pratt Free Library Pinterest board)
Altered Book Contest winners (Enoch Pratt Free Library Flickr set)
Grangerism (extra-illustrating)
These are amazing!