SUPERPORTRAITS™ AND WORLD PORTRAITS™
Stephen Bennett is an artist with a mission: he wants to look
into all the faces of the family of humanity and paint them. Immortalizing
the depth in expression of a life lived in the jungle, pueblo,
desert, tropics, islands, mountains, countryside and tundra is
his constant goal.
People of all ages, races and social strata get Bennett's artistic
juices flowing. He felt his artistic calling even as a child.
While other young boys were reading comic books and watching
TV in their spare time, Bennett was glued to the biography of
Van Gogh -- when he wasn't painting. Although his first live model
was a reptile, he soon moved on to human subjects, and found a
fascinating world in the sea of faces around him.
After training with professional artist Phillip Spaziani in high
school, the Amsterdam, New York native went on to major in fine
arts at Russell Sage College and the State University at New Paltz.
Afterwards, like many budding professionals, Bennett moved to
New York City to "live the artist's life." While continuing
to perfect his craft he worked as a scenic backdrop painter, a
set designer and even a "roadie" for a local band to
pay the bills.
But it didn't take long for Bennett's talent to get recognized.
His first big break came on a vacation to the Caribbean island
of St. Martin. Bennett spent the winter months living like a native
-- and painting them. As he got to know the townspeople, their
fondness for him as a person grew along with their admiration
of his work. Soon, he was painting a mural to beautify the local
post office. This act of artistic largesse made local headline.
This led to the elegant Hotel Meridian offering Bennett a space
to display his growing collection of the "Faces of St. Martin."
There, his work was seen by then-president of Panama Ernesto
Balladares, who subsequently invited Bennett to come to Panama.
After an official invitation from Balladares and the Minister
of Culture, Bennett spent nine months traveling the country, meeting
people and painting their portraits. The result was "The
Spirit of Panama." The lovingly-executed series of 110 paintings
includes such diverse subjects as a Cuna Indian fisherman, boxer
Roberto Duran, a retired saddle maker and the president. It was
exhibited in the capital for all to admire and was memorialized
in book form. "The Spirit of Panama" was also part of
the official program of the first meeting of the Panama Canal
congress in August 1997.
Bennett finished a series of portraits celebrating women in film
as a benefit for AMFAR. Bennett's work for AMFAR was covered by
CNN and UPN television, among others. Bennett also embarked on
a series of portraits of the people of the Yucatan peninsula entitled
"In the Light of the Yucatan." It proved such a huge
success that he has been invited back to Cancun, Mexico to present
a new month-long exhibit in March, 1999.
Be it Olympic swimmer Eileen Coparropa, an indigenous tribal
leader, celebrity Sharon Stone, or a Midwest grade-schooler, Bennett
infuses all his portraits with a sense of wonder and light. He
gets underneath the paint to reveal what's underneath the skin.
"I call my paintings SuperPortraits™ because by the time
they are finished they have a life of their own, an inner movement.
As the subject and I collaborate, a creative energy flow is created.
It builds as the subject relates to her portrait and is completed
when a viewer observes the finished painting. The movement embedded
in the very brush strokes of the portrait, persists -- empowering
the subject and touching the observer."
To learn more about Stephen's non profit
organization "Faces of the World" please click this
link: Faces of the World
Stephen's galleries are constantly under construction. We have
much more to share and look forward to hearing from you. If you
have any questions about any of the works on this site or would
like to commission Stephen to do a portrait, please email Lisa
or call 310.612.6555 for more info. Thank you so much.
