“I think of the paintings as little pages in my diary.”
— Anna Weyant

At just 27 years old, Canadian artist Anna Weyant is amidst a meteoric rise to critical acclaim for her figurative, painterly fantasies that are infused with playful humour, yet simultaneously embody more sombre undertones. Last month, mega-gallery Gagosian announced their exclusive representation of Weyant, making her the youngest artist currently on their roster. She will have a solo exhibition at Gagosian in New York this autumn.

The artist in her studio

Painted in 2019, Untitled presents the viewer with a tightly cropped composition of a horse’s rump, rendered in muted tones of walnut-brown. Painted with such a meticulous attention to detail, an instant comparison can be made to the life-like stallion subject of George Stubbs’ masterwork, Whistlejacket (circa 1762). At the same time, the zoomed-in framing and nondescript background instil the composition with a sense of the uncanny that is further enhanced by the horse’s gleaming coat, which appears to be cast in artificial light.

Weyant is known to incorporate dolls during her creative process, as she uses them to stage her sketches before later translating the composed scenes onto canvas. With this in mind, although the present painting is almost photo-realistic in its depiction, there is also an ambiguity caught within the features that points towards a more loosely defined interpretation, evoking the characters of figurine toys, nursery rhymes, and bedtime stories.

George Stubbs, Whistleblower, circa 1762
Collection of the National Gallery, London

Drawing influence from sources as varied as art historical references, to New Yorker cartoons, the golden-filtered content found on Instagram, or the artist’s own autobiography, Weyant depicts people, animals, and still-life objects surrounded by an air of narrational vagueness, utilising dark backgrounds, a softened focus, and balanced compositions to keep the attention on her chosen subjects. Her clever handling of luminous painterly effects and skilful use of chiaroscuro creates clear depth and perspective, which works to generate a visual experience that is as unsettling as it is enticing.

Whilst there are a number of artists whose work Weyant’s paintings can be considered in dialogue to, from seventeenth-century Dutch painters like Gerrit van Honthorst, to Johannes Vermeer, Frans Hals, and the madness of Otto Dix, a more contemporary connection can also be made to the figurative paintings of American artist John Currin, who is known for his provocative, satirical portraits. Of a similar vein, Weyant’s subjects are often uncanny yet hilarious, their focused portrayals carrying a surreal, tragicomic edge.

“In terms of technical ability, Weyant’s works rival the Dutch Golden Age masters which inspire her work, and in terms of narrative, she surpasses them. Through her beautifully rendered oil portraits and still-lifes, Weyant constructs fantastical vignettes engaging with absurd and often unsettling subjects”
— Cole Sweetwood

Born in Calgary, in 1995, Weyant earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts from the prestigious Rhode Island School of Design. Upon completion of her degree, she furthered her artistic education at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, before later moving to New York where she now lives and works.

Weyant’s work has been shown in exhibitions internationally. Most recently, this has included at Plus Gallery in Denver (12 February – 22 May 2022); Unit London (2021); Kasmin Gallery in New York (2021); The FLAG Art Foundation in New York (2021); and a solo show at Blum & Poe in Los Angeles (2021).

Detail of the present work
- Provenance
  56 Henry, New York
  Acquired from the above by the present owner in 2020