Attila Richard Lukacs (CANADIAN B. 1962), THE TRIAL OF LOVE (IN MEMORY OF HOLDER OS 1960-1990)

Lot description

ATTILA RICHARD LUKACS (CANADIAN B. 1962)THE TRIAL OF LOVE (IN MEMORY OF HOLDER OS 1960-1990)Oil on two joined canvasesSigned with initials and dated '90 (lower right)220 x 311cm (86½ x 122¼in.)Provenance:Diane Farris Gallery, Vancouver. B.C., Canada, 30 August 1990, no. 1203-149Born in Canada to Hungarian parents, Lukács gained international recognition for his large scale canvasses produced in Berlin during the 1980s and 1990s. Having moved to the city in 1986, a year after graduating from the Emily Carr Institute of Art & Design in Vancouver, he became interested in the skinhead subculture using them as models for his paintings and his work focussed on aggressive and intimidating portrayals of skinheads. The combination of young men depicted with militaristic emblems resulting in a body of work that was considered provocative for its overtones of homo-eroticism. The present painting, painted in 1990, differs from his earlier works in that they draw on promotional material for United States military academies and capture young me attempting various activities. These later works are softer in tone and often feature decorative backgrounds in materials such as gold leaf.