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Single Entity Art Exhibition at Studio E
Dave Swensen presents a series of drawing-based mixed media
works that explore identity through the figurative form. Drawing
provides the structure for each work, while layers of pencil, marker,
pigment, wax, and acrylic accumulate through processes of revision.
The figures are not portraits, but invented forms shaped through
exaggeration and self-constructed narrative. Features stretch and
distort, prioritizing psychological presence over realism. They appear
as fragments of unwritten stories, in a constant state of becoming. In
some works, multiple figures emerge as extensions or variations of a
single presence, suggesting identity as divided, repeated, or imagined
across form.
Each figure functions as a site of projection and interpretation. The
head becomes a space where observation and invention overlap,
where a single presence can hold multiple versions of itself. Through
layered mark-making and surface-building, Swensen constructs
works that sit at the intersection of memory, folklore, and lived
experience.
Dave Swensen (b. 1984) is an American painter whose work blends
figurative representation with psychological and symbolic imagery.
Working across wood, paper, and canvas, he builds layered surfaces
using acrylic, oil, wax, and pigment to construct images that
emphasize gesture, texture, and material depth. His paintings draw
from themes of love, dreams, magic, and darkness, translating the
figure into shifting narrative forms that invite open interpretation.
Each work captures a suspended moment, where imagery oscillates
between representation and abstraction. Swensen’s approach to
drawing and mark-making reflects an ongoing interest in the
complexity of human experience and perception.
Swensen has exhibited his work in the United States, the United
Kingdom, Germany, Italy, and New Zealand. He has been featured in
several publications, including New American Painters, Les Nouveaux
Riches, Sengo Magazine, and Juliet Contemporary Art Magazine.
Swensen is currently based in Des Moines, Iowa.
Event Links
Instagram: https://go.evvnt.com/3716556-0
