Hotel Tijuana

hotelAlexandra‘, is an art teacher from the English Midlands. Her discovery of the male form as a major subject for her work came by accident when one of her male students offered to model for her. Usually she paints males clothed, but allows the sensuality of the figure to show through. Her paintings are characterized by intense contrasts and colors; the backgrounds tend to be filled with detail, emphasizing the mood of the subjects. I find this understated image far more intriguing than ‘in your face’ nudity. (Hotel Tijuana, 2003, Oil on canvas, 39 x 31 inches )
Boy with skullIt vaguely reminds me of Cézanne’s Jeune homme à la tête de mort (Boy with skull), which I once saw at a Barnes Foundation special exhibition at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris in November 1993.