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If contemporary artist Charming Baker can count Damien Hirst amongst his fans, there can be no doubt that this is a man of great talent. But don’t just take Hirst’s word for it Baker’s esoteric prints can do all the talking, with their offbeat subjects, extraordinary execution and unique aesthetic. His work is best known for its relationship with destruction Baker often damages his pieces by drilling, cutting, occasionally shooting at, and often defacing them in some way, to question the precious valuation of art in contemporary culture. ‘Calf’ depicts a rough but detailed sketch of a young cow, rendered in heavy graphite strokes against a white background. Baker has mixed up mediums by painting thick, golden coloured lines, that intersect across the calfs body, like coils of rope. The layered materials clash in a way that confounds expectation, as the lines of abstraction, pasted onto the figurative sketch, transform the traditional image. It’s not an easy image to read but, like Hirst says, “who cares Charming Baker’s paintings are great.”
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