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but Trolove focuses inward, searching for the unique
energy concealed behind personal appearance. He
probes the interface between one person and another
through his art. No mistake about it, the extreme
close-up of Trolove’s faces and their size—nearly
always greater than life—demand an almost physical
response from the viewer. We cannot fail to feel their
presence near to us conveyed through the senses. We
seem to enter into their private world rather than to
stand apart and contemplate external appearances.
This is where the liminal aspect comes into play,
eliding the divide between their personal space and
ours.
The artist has observed: ‘Shifting between
emotional states like grief and love can change us
physically. When we are in love things taste better,
we can hear more. Physically we are connected to
everything else in the world.’
This heightened awareness of the relationship
between the viewer and the subject of the paintings
is what makes Tenderise a progression from his earlier
paintings. Comparatively, those from 2014 or 2015, for
example, are more within the bounds of conventional
portraiture; they are more literal, more specific and
more recognisable as individual faces or people.
Although he applied the paint expressionistically,