Ray Caesar (born October 26, 1958) is an English digital

surreal Surreal may refer to: *Anything related to or characteristic of Surrealism, a movement in philosophy and art * "Surreal" (song), a 2000 song by Ayumi Hamasaki * ''Surreal'' (album), an album by Man Raze *Surreal humour, a common aspect of humor ...

artist who lives and works in

Arcadia Arcadia may refer to: Places Australia * Arcadia, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney * Arcadia, Queensland * Arcadia, Victoria Greece * Arcadia (region), a region in the central Peloponnese * Arcadia (regional unit), a modern administrative un ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Early life

Ray spent 17 years working in the Art & Photography Department of the Hospital For Sick Children in Toronto, in their art therapy program. Inspired by

surrealists Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...

such as

Frida Kahlo Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderón (; 6 July 1907 – 13 July 1954) was a Mexican painter known for her many portraits, self-portraits, and works inspired by the nature and artifacts of Mexico. Inspired by the country's popular culture, ...

and

Salvador Dalí Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (; ; ; 11 May 190423 January 1989) was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, and the striking and bizarr ...

, Caesar's experiences at the Children Hospital deeply influenced his artwork. Caesar said: "Working in a photography department in a Children's hospital is the act of chronicling everything from child abuse, re-constructive surgery, to the heroic children that deal with the hardship and challenges that life has to offer. I spent many years creating medical and research documentation, medical and technical drawings, images of huge equipment surrounding tiny premature infants and visual tools for brain-damaged children". From 1998 to 2001 he worked as a senior animator in GVFX, Toronto, where he mastered his skills in using 3D modelling software.

Artistic style

Ray Caesar's work is digitally created using 3D modelling software called

Maya Maya may refer to: Civilizations * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Maya language, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (Ethiopia), a populat ...

, mastered while working in

digital animation Computer animation is the process used for digitally generating animations. The more general term computer-generated imagery (CGI) encompasses both static scenes (still images) and dynamic images (moving images), while computer animation refer ...

for television and film industries from 1998-2001. His portraits involve contrasting elements of childlike innocence, grotesque physical deformities, and

sexual innuendo An innuendo is a hint, insinuation or intimation about a person or thing, especially of a denigrating or derogatory nature. It can also be a remark or question, typically disparaging (also called insinuation), that works obliquely by allusion ...

s. In his creations he merges elements of decorative styles and architectural ages, mixing Art Decò, Victorian style and visual codes from the early 1900s. According to an interview with ``Empty Lighthouse'' Caesar begins his process with "automatic drawing which is basically just letting your hand do first what your mind hasn't thought about." His work often contains elements which are invisible in the final render such as "old letters and photographs in lockets hat are tuckedaway into drawers that are closed." According to Caesar, "I know they are there... and I love that sometimes I forget they are there." Caesar likens the virtual environment to "a dissociative fugue or very deep daydream... you can get lost in there very easily."

Professional credits

In 1999, Caesar received a Primetime Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Special Visual Effects for his work on ''

Total Recall 2070 ''Total Recall 2070'' is a science fiction television series influenced by the work of Philip K. Dick. It was first broadcast in 1999 on the Canadian television channel CHCH-TV and later the same year on the American Showtime channel. It was late ...

'', a Gemini Nomination for Special Effects and a Monitor Award for Special Effects in a series.

Cultural impact

Caesar's work has become popular amongst celebrities and fashion icons, such as

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

, who collects his works and has claimed Ray Caesar is one of her favourite artists.

Riccardo Tisci Riccardo Tisci (; born 1974) is an Italian fashion designer. He studied in Italy at the Design Istituto d’Arte Applicata in Cantù until the age of 17, and then graduated from London's Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in 1999. In ...

of Givenchy curated issue #8 of A Magazine, in which he featured artwork by Ray Caesar as a source of creative inspiration. Ray Caesar is frequently featured in

Contemporary Art Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic com ...

magazine Hi Fructose.

Solo exhibitions

* 2015 - "Pretty Little Predators", Gallery House, Toronto, Canad

* 2014 - "The Trouble With Angels", Palazzo Saluzzo Paesana, Turin, Ital

* 2014 - "The Trouble With Angels",

Dorothy Circus Gallery Dorothy Circus Gallery is a contemporary art gallery exhibiting artworks belonging to lowbrow, graffiti and street art. Overview Dorothy Circus Gallery was founded in 2007 by publisher Maddalena Di Giacomo and her daughter, Alexandra Mazzant ...

, Rome, Ital

* 2013 - "Ray Caesar", Corey Helford Gallery Retrospective Show, Culver City, LA, USA * 2012 - "Ray Caesar", Kochxbos Gallery, Amsterdam The Netherlands * 2011 - "A Gentle Kind Of Cruelty",

Jonathan LeVine Gallery Jonathan LeVine is an American art dealer, instrumental in the proliferation of lowbrow and street art on the East Coast of the United States. About LeVine grew up in Trenton, New Jersey. As a teenager, he encountered punk rock music and the p ...

, New York, US

* 2011 - "Solo show", Corey Helford Gallery, LA California, USA * 2010 - "I Sogni Di Cristallo", Mondo Bizzaro Gallery, Rome, Ital

* 2007 - "Ipso Facto", Richard Goodall Gallery, Manchester, Englan

* 2006 - "Sweet Victory", Jonathan LeVine Gallery, New York, US

* 2005 - "Secret Doors and Hidden Rooms", Jonathan LeVine Gallery, New York, US

Bibliography

* ''Ray Caesar, Art Collection,Volume 1''. Mark Murphy Designs, 200

* ''Ray Caesar, Ipso Facto''. Richard Goodall Gallery Exclusive, 200

Personal life

Caesar was born in England and moved to Canada in 1967 with his family. In interviews, Caesar has revealed that he suffers from

dissociative identity disorder Dissociative identity disorder (DID), better known as multiple personality disorder or multiple personality syndrome, is a mental disorder characterized by the presence of at least two distinct and relatively enduring personality states. The di ...

, potentially due to witnessing traumatic events in his childhood including abuse, surgical reconstruction, and animal research. He often refers to an "alternate" named Harry, who has been present in his life as an alter ego since he was 10. According to an interview with ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'', Harry often appears in Caesar's art as a girl and is a reflection of his gender variance. Caesar and his Jane and live in Toronto, Canada.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Caesar, Ray British surrealist artists OCAD University alumni Living people 1958 births