Jarek Puczel Polish, b. 1965

Puczel's subject is the figure, particularly the head. His compositions typically feature a couple, male and female, engaged in an intimate embrace. A romantic and idealised moment is rendered in a coolly dispassionate style. His technique is graphic and crisp; the colour and tone flat, the draughtsmanship precise. The models are sparingly described: contours are missing, which allows the background to bleed through. The subjects float over the picture plane, as if at risk of disintegration. At odds with the implied emotive content, the technique sets up a tension, a critical distance from the act depicted.