Sensual Portraits by Malcolm T. Liepke.

Sparklers, 2015.

End Of Day, 2014.

Confetti, 2014.

Girl in a Sofa, 2016.

Sitting Out, 2014.

Male Attitude, 2015.

Clenched Fists, 2016.

Red Rocker, 2014.

Floating, 2014.

Malcolm T. Leipke is a largely self-taught artist who paints in a style that echoes the work of the greats such as Whistler, Sargent, Degas and Lautrec, to create portraits that are both visually familiar and wholly unique.

Liepke paints ordinary people, primarily women, in glamorous setting, who appear to be inhabitants of the film, stage and fashion world. Versed in the art of performance and self-projection, they are used to being looked at and return the viewers’ gaze sometimes provocatively, with insolence or innocently. Liepke’s portraits are as beautifully and as aggressively painted as they are sensual and erotic.

Liepke demonstrates a brave handling of oil paint, its rich consistency describing creamy tones of pink and pale skin. The expressive looseness of the handling articulates the flesh and demands the viewers attention. Wilder, spikier handling describes the texture of hair and fur. This contrast between surfaces highlights the tactile excitement and variety of the subject. Liepke uses colour skilfully, strategically deploying electric hues of orange, blue, lilac and pink against the delicate skin tones of the models.

Tough Kid, 2016.

Resting, 2016.

Blue Angel I, 2015.

Balloons and Confetti, 2016.

Smudged Lipstick, 2016.

Malcolm T. Liepke was born in 1953 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and is now based in New York City. At 63 years of age, Liepke still paints like mad, having produced an exceptionally large body of work. He is a highly sought after artist who has enjoyed sold out showings across the world, and I’m sure we can all agree it’s not difficult to see why. He da man.

Related Post: Arresting Hyperrealistic Portraits By Mike Dargas.

[Images courtesy of Artsy and Shine Artists.]