Charlotte Evans

Lives and works in Toronto, ON, Canada

Artist statement

Charlotte is a British artist (b.1981, London) living in Toronto, Canada. She is mother to three children. She is an only child to older, aging parents. She is an anxious introvert. She is queer. She has many identities, she answers to many names. Identity and belonging are themes that weave through all of Charlotte’s work. She makes paintings – gouache on paper and oil on canvas. The works on paper are more intimate, often quite intricate, while the work on canvas range in size from relatably domestic- the size of a bathroom mirror, for instance- to some that are as tall as you. All the works are saturated, celebrations of colour. Figures populate landscapes; individuals or small groups, though the figures often remain isolated from one another. The work is ornamental, often theatrical; the figures are like actors on stage- the paintings making reference to Victorian theatre cut outs. Charlotte employs colour and pattern in place of more conventional drawing techniques, like perspective, to add depth and suggest layers in the paintings. Intense colour also serves to disarm the viewer from the sometimes darker undertone of the paintings. Heavily influenced by Italian Renaissance art and Moghul Miniatures, Charlotte often borrows pictorial and compositional elements from each. Charlotte graduated from Byam Shaw School of Art, now part of Central St. Martins with a BA in Fine Art in 2003. She left London for New York in 2011 where for several years she worked from a studio...

Artwork