Merging Realities

by Max Wald

‘Merging Realities’ is a visual journey that invites you to explore the dialogue between portraiture and still life, allowing these two seemingly disparate genres to engage in a profound conversation. The artist skillfully navigates the tension between the perceived order of the natural, and stylized madness of the human condition.

Enter a world of masks, where beautiful pop culture heavy facades are merged and challenged stylistically by the expectations of beauty and nature. These masks serve as both a disguise and a revelation, reflecting the duality of identity in the queer experience. The imagery speaks to manufactured frontages that provoke, seduce, or invite temptation and discomfort. Clowns, Rock Stars, and angels come alive, infused with the spirit of inanimate objects, while still life takes on a human dimension. Florals are presented and posed yet painted with a technique that merges their reality with the portrait. This symbiosis invites you to question the boundaries between the animate and inanimate, the organic and inorganic, nature and madness.

‘Merging Realities’ is a relational exploration of queerness as it grapples with a profound connection to beauty and inner turmoil. Chaos and order dance in harmony, a balancing act revealing the versatility and resilience of queer creativity, challenging traditional notions of aesthetics and pushing boundaries in the pursuit of self-expression.