1969
Philip Hanson American, born 1943
United States
Philip Hanson’s vibrant, intricately patterned paintings transform the everyday into images that are both mysterious and surreal. Hanson’s work aligned him with the Chicago Imagists, a group he showed with in the False Image exhibitions at the Hyde Park Art Center in 1968 and 1969. His work is often imbued with a subtle, romantic quality. Echoing the subject matter of the canvas itself, the painted flower petals on the artist’s handmade frame resemble dresses with their stamens extending like the arms of dancing women. The solitary woman at the center of the composition hides her face behind an accordion fan, surrounded by a half dozen anonymous dancing couples. Despite the crowded scene, the faceless couples appear lonely and removed from one another. The painting simultaneously conveys feelings of whimsy and foreboding—the subject matter may seem lighthearted, but the shadowed figures are quietly menacing.
Oil on canvas, in artist's painted frame