co-op joburg

Comeback boys is an exhibition of miniature portraits of imaginary men and invented idols. An ensemble of fictional, yet quintessential, heroes, icons, alter egos, and assorted gentlemen. The young men in these images represent the cast from a stereotypical tragicomedy – which in this case is, the legend of the modern man.

These character sketches serve as a sort of regimen for the artist, a catalogue of actors who form part of Taylor’s picture lexicon, and every so often make an appearance his work. In Comeback boys they are portrayed in intimate, miniature works on paper, suggesting a kind of specimen of contemporary, masculine identities.

In the process of selecting works for the show, Taylor draws together the variety of mediums he investigates when working on paper, ranging from simple pencil sketches to monotype prints, the show looks at how different drawing mediums inform the characterisation of the male subjects.

Michale Taylor Michael is a South African artist who was born in 1979 and grew up in Johannesburg. He attained his MA in Visual Art in 2006 (Cum Laude) and has been working as a professional artist since then. He also holds a part-time lecturing post at Stellenbosch Academy of Design and Photography, teaching Illustration and Design Discourse. Michael lives and works in Cape Town. This is his debut exhibition at CO-OP.