VLAB is pleased to present Jared Brook´s exclusive presentation  “Gazing Through Ephemera'' featuring new works that have never been shown before in an exhibition. The presentation also marks the artist's first solo exhibition with the gallery in Madrid, after the duo show presented last June 2023 “I am Gay and I am Proud” alongside works by Felipe Chavez.

Jared Brook is an abstract figure painter living and working in Chicago. Brook studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago graduating with a BFA in 2020. Although his parents are both American, Brook was born and raised in Central Europe. Growing up in a highly religious community, Brook struggled throughout adolescence with his sexuality and identity. Nods to his religious upbringing can be found in his work but are often juxtaposed by homoerotic themes. Brook paints his figures with an intensity and urgency reminiscent of the abstract expressionists but with a queer contemporary lens. Ideas of voyeurism, fragmented masculinity, and gay identity are always at the forefront of his work.

Jared Brook´s work up until this point has always had a sort of over-the-top dramatic flair, but lately it has been inching towards a softness while still being painterly and confidently assertive.

“These new paintings express a more delicate side, something that I have been hoping to achieve ever since I first started painting the figure. I approached these new works with urgency and challenged myself to make complex images out of simplistic ideas”.

Nuanced perspective and delicate gesture contrast the vivid use of color and bold application of material. These queer bodies express a lived-in comfortability yet their vulnerability is felt just below the painted surface. Figures are seated towards the viewer, set to be an open conversation, yet a guarded fragility haunts these subjects. Eyes hide behind glasses and arms are folded over the chest—walls being placed. Intentions hidden. Emotions being buried.

The exclusive presentation “Gazing through Ephemera” will be on view at VLAB from November 9th to November 18th, 2023.