River Paterson is a Dundee-based painter and recent graduate from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, who primarily works in oils. Their practice explores themes of isolation and self-reflection, depicting the human body in raw moments of vulnerability and honesty.
This series of works, comprised largely of self-portraiture, is an examination of the effort that goes into maintaining the masks we wear to face the world at large, and the toll that life in the 21st century takes on mind and body.
Their artistic practice throughout their time at DJCAD revolved around the exploration of themes related to identity and the intersection of gender performance and self-expression, with the goal of challenging typical depictions of bodies in traditional art, and they have carried this thread forward into their professional practice, embracing a style that is more frank and expressively driven.