Jean-Pierre Khazem

The use of masks is Khazem’s signature device, used most conspicuously in his work as a commercial and fashion photographer.    With this series of works plastic human faces watching TV look more like a Goya nightmare than a photograph.  Khazems play on surrealism asks questions about the disguises we use for other people and the masks we use for ourselves in solitary or familiar places.

“I used masks because I couldn’t bear the acting of models, the way they always pull the same faces, the pout, the glare, and so on. When people put on the masks, they forget their egos. With the mask, the quality of the human comes out.”

Iconic heroes of fur and diamond dust

Peter Lloyd


Couldn't reference masks without highlighting the work of Peter Lloyd. Inspired by his personal observations of Mexican Wrestling subculture, Lloyd created his own iconic heroes for his series of 'Wrestler' prints, each with a highly symbolic visual code. As an artist who had previously always worked in monotone, he was inspired by the colourful and flamboyant costumes to adopt an equally vibrant Latin palette to portray his company of witty alter egos. Just as the wrestlers create their elaborate costumes with appliqued fabrics, Lloyd developed innovative print techniques, incorporating such diverse materials as carborundum, diamond dust, glitter and synthetic fur. These powerful portraits continue a tradition of the marriage of popular culture and fine art, evident in the work of Andy Warhol in America and Peter Blake in England, and it is no surprise to discover that his works can be found in the collections of several contemporary “pop icons”, including David Bowie, Missy Elliot, Vic Reeves and Holly Johnson.

These prints clearly attune to my current interest in fur, however I will be referencing his other works later on.