Antony Micallef
Rooting his expressionistic paintings in social commentary and self-examination, Antony Micallef is a traditional artist whose bright colours sometimes belie the troubling nature of his imagery. Figures and faces emerge from Micallef’s veils of loose, abstract brushstrokes, recalling the figurative work of Francis Bacon, Brad Holland, and Ralph Steadman. Micallef derives his visual language from the Old Masters, graffiti, fashion magazines, corporate iconography, and Japanese cartoons. The artist's oeuvre also takes in charcoal self-portraits – the lauded Head series – and grandiose reboots of mythological scenes. He even exhibited a series of large bronze nickel-plated sculptures, 'The Idol kids of Today' in the colonnade that forms the entrance to London's Royal Academy of Art. The sculptures also appeared in Lazarides' Hell's Half Acre exhibition.
His career landmarks include coming runner-up in the BP Portrait Prize, the wildly successful solo exhibition, Impure Idols, on Hollywood Boulevard, and inclusion in AKA Peace, a group exhibition at London's Institute of Contemporary Arts curated by Jake Chapman. He has also exhibited at The National Portrait Gallery, Royal Academy, Tate Britain and the ICA London.