Bael

It’s a rare thing for a young artist to come along with a style and visual language fully formed. But this is definitely the case with Bael (AKA Michael James Bell). Still in the early stages of his career, his work has a confidence and clarity that many other, more experienced artists would envy.  

Bael’s solo show at Signal Gallery will be the culmination of all this lifelong passion for drawing. The show will be called ‘Die Tiere’ (The Beasts). The title of the show was chosen for two reasons. Firstly, as the artists says ‘the use of a German title derives from the influence that German/Austrian expressionism has had on my art. My earliest and most long lasting influences are artists such as; Egon Schiele, Oskar Kokoschka and Max Beckmann’.  Secondly, the work in the show is based on the blurring of the boundaries between humans and other animals. As the artist says again ‘the figures are caught in animalistic poses and have physical characteristics from the animal kingdom. My belief is that all complex human emotions are routed in the primal part of our being’. 

Having shown at Signal Gallery in a number of group shows already, the response to his work has been very positive.