Everybody has a little “fuck you” in them, be it simply an edgy swagger or an extreme fire raging inside. It can take on many manifestations, from a shouty disposition to a megastar rapper’s searing lyrics to a quiet internal rumbling waiting for someone or something to ignite it.
This emotional state of being may sometimes be an isolated kernel that exists within an otherwise peaceful existence. But ask any comedian, rock star, rapper, athlete, actor, business owner, cancer survivor, abuse survivor, etc. and they’ll tell you it’s a living entity, like a nuclear reactor that powers their being, with all the benefits and dangers that come with it. I have a healthy supply that controls me, in my art and personally. Nevertheless, we all have some form of it lurking inside whether we realize it or not.
The genesis of this series was born from that hypothesis of basic human FU but developed a step further. The universal expression of “fuck you” is the finger, or “the bird”. When I photographed my hand for my self-portrait (before I decided to make it a series), I noticed how very personal my “bird” was. I was doing it my way, a signature of who I am. I inferred that we all must have our own “bird”.
Das Vogel™ is a portrait series of people expressing their FU’s with their own personal hand expressions. Limited to 100 paintings. Currently in development.
Artwork:
"Das Vogel (Self-Portrait)", 2022
48 x 48 inches
Mixed-Media on Wood
©Artist Robert Perez