Leeloo 

Vincent Xeus created ‘Leeloo’ using oil on wood, in a style that merges traditional portraiture with a contemporary interest in surface and texture. The choice of wood as a base is crucial. Unlike canvas, its rigid surface resists the brushstrokes, resulting in a striated effect that seems to both reveal and obscure the subject. The oil paint, applied in thin layers, emphasizes the grain of the wood, integrating it into the very image. Xeus’s technique here, involving a sort of controlled drag, gives the portrait a transient quality, as if it’s in the process of forming or dissolving. There's a dialogue here between the labor-intensive tradition of oil painting and a more casual, almost digital aesthetic. The result isn’t quite painting, not quite printmaking, but a compelling hybrid. This blurring of boundaries challenges us to reconsider the value we place on different forms of making. Ultimately, the materials and methods employed are integral to the artwork's evocative power.