Francisco Benitez

ut pictura poesis

[ june 24th - july 10th, 2011 ]

Known for his conceptual old master oils, Benítez discovered the ancient method of working figuratively with encaustic, exemplified by the well-known Fayum portraits of ancient Egypt. Working with this painstaking process, Benitez forges compelling portraits and figures out of molten wax, often with vignettes and poetic texts embedded into the luscious surface. Although he is preoccupied with examining and recuperating the ancient Greek and Egyptian past through an art historical technique, his subject matter is totally contemporary and examines the individual psyche confronted with the angst of our technologically driven, progress-oriented society. The title, Ut Pictura Poesis, a term coined by Roman author Horace, implies that the artistic image is interlaced with the threads of ethereal texts which poignantly construct a complex tableau representing perceptions of the world in which we live.

Benítez has featured his encaustics at the Chapelle des Penitents Blancs in Gordes, France, and the Abbaye de Fontmorigny (France) in 2008 and 2010.  In addition to his painting, he lectures on the two-dimensional works of the baroque period, plus he has begun teaching workshops on the encaustic technique in the US and Europe, most notably at R & F paints in Kingston, New York, and the Encaustic Art Institute in Cerrillos, New Mexico.  Benitez' work is also included in numerous private collections, come as high profile as Jean-Paul Gaultier's.  These collections are spread across the globe, including the United States, France, Italy, Mexico, Canada and Sweden.  His work is on permanent display at the New Mexico State Legislature's public art collection, as well as at the National Hispanic Culture Center and Conseil General de l'Aveyron in France.