Cake (Blake)," 2011
Oil on digital ink jet print and acrylic and ink on two wood panels
Signed: Jim Shaw; dated and inscribed "Blake" in pencil on the verso of the smaller panel; titled by repute
Larger: 37.5" H x 37.5" W; Smaller: 22" H x 10" W

Provenance: Patrick Painter, Inc. Los Angeles, California
The Blake Byrne Collection acquired from the above

Literature: https://whitehotmagazine.com/articles/white-rectangles-devil-in-details/2296

Notes: Shaw's versatile oeuvre includes drawings, sculptures, prints, and photographs that often blur traditional categorization. He derives influence from Pop Art, Neo-Expressionism, and Surrealism while likewise dismantling traditional notions of high and low art by incorporating outsider influences. Cake (Blake) is one of several in his series of men in a seemingly tortured mental state and set against an abstract background. It is a dual painting moment with a second canvas (identical to the blank shape found in the larger canvas) depicting cake icing in grayscale color. When asked to describe how his fascination with the subconscious informs his artwork, Shaw explains: "I've figured out that the core of dream logic is that it's an occult way of telling you something by not just lecturing you directly, but by showing you in a satirical way or a symbolic way with things that are formally similar but not exactly the same.

Visual: Generally good condition. Minor surface dirt and grime on the verso of the smaller panel.

Blacklight: No evidence of restoration under blacklight.

Overall: Larger: 37.5" H x 37.5" W x 2.75" D; Smaller: 22" H x 10" W x 1" D