The Mugshot Series: Icons Under Arrest

In the Mugshot Series, I explore the intersection of celebrity, notoriety, and the human "unmasking" that occurs within the walls of a booking room. This collection reimagines famous historical arrest photos—capturing the raw, unfiltered gaze of icons at their most vulnerable and defiant moments.

By translating these low-fidelity police records into high-fidelity paintings, I invite the viewer to look past the crime and into the character of the individual.

The Aesthetics of Notoriety

• Stripped Realism: Moving away from the soft lighting of traditional portraiture, this series utilizes the harsh, top-down shadows and high-contrast greyscales typical of mid-century police photography.

• Text & Texture: These works often incorporate the original booking slates and serial numbers, blending typography with portraiture to ground the subject in a specific moment of time and history.

• The Human Gaze: Whether it is the soulful defiance of Jim Morrison or the quiet vulnerability of a historical figure, these portraits capture a "likeness" that is often more honest than a professional studio session.