Gemini 2019

Camilla d’Errico paints ‘Gemini’ with a fine hand, building up the surface with layers of translucent oil paint. The skin tones, with their almost porcelain-like smoothness, remind me of some Renaissance portraiture – but with a distinctly contemporary twist. Look at the precise detail of the butterfly wings, each one painstakingly rendered. D’Errico isn’t just copying what she sees; she’s building a world. The composition has an amazing symmetry, a classic mirroring, and these cute manga-esque figures reaching towards one another. They are framed by this incredible collection of insects, a symbolic symmetry mirroring their gesture. This piece sparks connections across art history. It’s like a modern take on the Pre-Raphaelites, those nineteenth-century painters so into detail and dreamy storytelling, but with the bold color and graphic punch of contemporary pop art. You can sense the conversation between artists across time. It's all about an exchange of ideas!