Pigment and mixed media on canvas

Gold, purple, and green abstract mixed-media painting by Hawaii-based artist, Èlan Vital. The piece depicts a deep, almost three-dimensional painting achieved through layers of pigments. Small stone-like details create texture throughout the painting. Paint drippings are also seen along the edges of the piece. Signed by the artist at the back of the painting. Unframed but framing options are available.

As the son of a prominent lithographer and growing up in New York City, Élan was exposed to art and color at a very early age. His discovery of Leonardo DaVinci's renaissance diversity theory first touched him when he was only seven; DaVinci became an influential force in Élan's life and still is to this day. Élan attended a high school for gifted students and graduated with honors, attaining an equivalency of an Associate Degree in Engineering at age seventeen. After graduation, Élan was hired by the IBM Corporation as a computer diagnostics expert - the youngest on their team. He was later hired by the ITT Corporation as a design engineer for projects such as the Manila airport underground lighting system and the towers for a hydroelectric dam in Pakistan. Élan's personal artistic revolution began after leaving the corporate world and joining a commune of artists in the East Village, Manhattan. It was there while designing psychedelic lighting equipment, Élan met Andy Warhol. Andy committed the monetary resources for Élan to design the first psychedelic discotechque, located on Saint Marks Place in New York City. This became the springboard for many artistic endeavors for Élan - combining invention with art. Élan moved to Hawaii in 1988. His first major work in Maui was a 49-foot, 10-ton, life-size, humpback whale - the largest sculpture of its kind in Hawaii. Élan donated the whale to establish Maui's Ecology Park, where it is now on permanent display. After completion of the whale, Élan began his signature work - combining aerospace enamel with exotic pigments and finely ground minerals. His inspiration for these meta-realistic paintings comes from the beauty of gemstones, his colorful surroundings, and life itself. Élan's masterpieces, with 30-75 layers of extraordinary color, explode with depth and movement! Like fine studio art-glass and gemstones, light travels through each individual layer of color; this is what makes Élan's work so incredibly luminous! The only artist in the world to use this medium and technique, Élan has captured nature's beauty, creating a unique and compelling style. Currently the number one selling artist of original paintings in the Hawaiian Islands, Élan has sold over 6,500 works, with patrons from around the world. More than 70% of Élan's admirers have acquired five or more works of art for their homes or businesses. Élan's originals can be seen online at Elan Vital Galleries, at Elan's Cathedral City, California commissions Studio and exclusively adorning the walls of "Sarento's On the Beach" in Wailea, Hawaii. The Medium of Élan Vital. ~by Marcia Godinez the Maui News "The simplest way to describe Élan's paintings is to compare them to gemstones. Imagine looking deeply into the polished surface of a moss agate or an opal. Picture how these stones look with cells or rivers of hardened color suspended in a transparent mineral. Now imagine how that surface might look if it measured about 4x5 feet and you'll have a glimmer of what the artist is up to. It seems that in his wanderings, and in his desire to create something that is truly 'beyond contemporary', as he calls it, Élan decided he needed to invent a new way of handling color. Traditional methods of mixing pigments and applying them with brushes failed to yield anything exciting. So the artist turned to engineering and technology. He found his materials in the aerospace industry, in the form of an aerospace enamel which allows pure pigments and minerals to be infused within a transparent medium. Élan's exact recipe is, of course, a secret. But the substance he has fashioned allows him to mix his colors so they remain pure, untainted by other pigments in close proximity. In working a new canvas, the pigment/medium mixture is poured across the surface while its consistency is similar to honey. The canvas is elevated or lowered, allowing the mixture to flow and create desired patterns with gravity. As the substance begins to harden the surface appearance can be manipulated even further, cells can be pulled and elongated or compressed and flattened. Ridges and bubbles can be formed. Infrared light is another element used to control the surface texture and the degree to which the image can be altered. At various intervals the surface of the paintings are polished to release their luster and beauty. The whole medium and concept of what this artist is doing is truly remarkable. This is work that must be seen. I am not aware of anything similar that has been done or is being done. Élan may very well have stumbled upon something of major significance."

H 36 in x W 36 in x D 2.5 in