
Kai McCall, "Lily Starlight"
Oil on canvas
54" x 48"
Kai McCall, "Night Bloom"
Oil on canvas
52" x 46"
Kai McCall, "It Was Another Lifetime"
Oil on canvas
54" x 48"
Kai McCall "Samothrace"
Oil on canvas
80" x 44"
Kai McCall "Hair in the Air"
Oil on canvas
66" x 46"
Kai McCall "You Couldn’t Say Surprised"
Oil on canvas
66" x 46"
Kai McCall "Listening in Darkness"
Oil on canvas
54" x 48"
Kai McCall "Lens Flare"
Oil on canvas
50" x 72"
Kai McCall "Goldenrod"
Oil on canvas
72" x 50"
Kai McCall "Late Rose White Out”
Oil on canvas
66" x 46"
Kai McCall "Lucid Juncture"
Oil on canvas
60" x 60"
Kai McCall "Shimmer Gold"
Oil on canvas
72" x 50"
Kai McCall "Electra"
Oil on canvas
60" x 60"
Kai McCall "Triumph Bonneville" SOLD
Oil on canvas
66" x 46"
Kai McCall "Biker Jacket" SOLD
Oil on canvas
66" x 46"
Kai McCall "Flip, Curl, Wave" SOLD
Oil on canvas
20" x 16"
Kai McCall "If I Had a Rocket Launcher" SOLD
Oil on canvas
72" x 50"
Kai McCall "Be My Lucky Star" SOLD
Oil on canvas
72" x 72"
Kai McCall "Late Night Reconciliation" SOLD
Oil on canvas
72" x 54"
Kai McCall "Drop Tangled" SOLD
Oil on canvas
66" x 46"
Kai McCall "Eclipse of the Gaze" SOLD
Oil on canvas
66" x 46"
Kai McCall "Onset of Longing" SOLD
Oil on canvas
66" x 46"
Kai McCall "Someone We Hardly Know" SOLD
Oil on canvas
66" x 46"
Kai McCall "Rising Canon" SOLD
Oil on canvas
58" x 36"
Kai McCall "Late Night Picture" SOLD
Oil on canvas
76" x 42"
Kai McCall "World of Mirrors" SOLD
Oil on canvas
70" x 108"
Kai McCall "Wall of Sound" SOLD
Oil on canvas
32" x 26"
Kai McCall "Cold City Picture" SOLD
Oil on canvas
36" x 26"
Kai McCall "Sound of Blue" SOLD
Oil on canvas
58" x 36"
Kai McCall "From a Place of Transformation " SOLD
Oil on canvas
60" x 90"
Kai McCall "Garden of Seeing Things" SOLD
Oil on canvas
58" x 36"
Kai McCall "Losing Track of Time" SOLD
Oil on canvas
66" x 46"
Kai McCall’s paintings represent contemporary figures inspired by art history, as well as literature, illustration, and film, which are found in the narrative of his work. While being located in the present, the works challenge the past by borrowing the tones and colors of the great portraits of the 18th century.
Like in a fictional work, the figures in Kai McCall's paintings face challenges and conflicts as they navigate the frames created for them. He considers them semi-autonomous individuals who poses evolve as they are painted, and which are defined by the possible actions that they endorse in a composition.
There are no detailed preparatory drawings. The character of his figures evolves gradually as Kai McCall modifies their hair, clothing or posture. This method offers maximum flexibility to the artist, who works directly on the canvas on the elements defining each figure, as he paints.
Despite the obvious nature of the imagery and the actions of the figures, the meaning behind Kai McCall's work remains obscure, as there is always a certain ambiguity that disturbs the subject's presence. The introduction of improbable or even surreal elements in the paintings evokes an ambivalent relationship between the subject and our expectations of portraiture. Kai McCall's paintings can be read more like a fiction, where the last chapters would be missing. They ask the viewer to become aware of each conflict that takes place within the image. However, any final resolution remains suspended in time, in a pictorial ambiguity.
The Dutch styled paintings of the XVIIth century influenced the evolution of his series, both stylistically and conceptually. Some elements are found in the layered technique of the Dutch masters, to create shimmering fabrics and transparent skin tones.
Conceptually, Kai McCall is interested in the role genre painting played in the history of art. According to the hierarchies that existed at the time, genre painting was considered a subcategory, less important than the official portrait or historical painting. Kai McCall finds this hierarchy between genres interesting and relevant today, in the context of contemporary art.
Originally from Montreal, Kai McCall holds a BFA in fine arts from the University of Ottawa. His work is collected around the world, and he has been exhibited in Canada, the United States, and Europe. He is the recipient of several awards of Excellence from the Canadian Council for the Arts and is still working in Montreal.