Jordan Casteel

A magnetic sense of proximity and directness defines the work of Denver-born and New York–based artist Jordan Casteel. Renowned for her bold, larger-than-life compositions that combine luminescent colour with sinuous, intricately detailed brushwork, she collects impressions of her communities and the vibrant displays of humanity she encounters there. Whether tracing the textures and topographies of her neighbourhood or the natural ebb and flow of her surroundings, Casteel makes visible her fleeting observations of daily life, and conveys a kinship with her landscape. Her subjects – who are always a direct reflection of the communities she inhabits – almost always return the artist’s gaze. ‘What we see when we look at one of Jordan’s portraits is her ability to represent her subjects in their fullness,’ notes Thelma Golden, Director and Chief Curator of the Studio Museum in Harlem. ‘She is able to capture a sense of spirit, a sense of self, a sense of soul.’ Over the course of her career, Casteel has developed a uniquely empathetic approach to storytelling that draws on her own interest in anthropology and sociology, as well as the work of figurative painters including Alice Neel and Bob Thompson. Her portraits are intimate studies enriched with captivating detail, where her subjects’ stolen glances or interlaced hands are rendered with the same painterly care as the subtleties of their environments. Casteel forgoes the formality of the traditional studio sitting – in which power dynamics between artist and model are implicit – and captures her subjects in the very places she discovers them. For Casteel, authentic connections with the members of her community provide the foundation for authentic image-making. ‘I am meeting people where they are,’ she explains, ‘as opposed to asking them to enter my space.’ Photography plays a critical role in her practice, though no one photograph becomes the painting alone. The numerous snapshots she takes serve as an expansive memory of relational time and place. In her celebrated , an ongoing body of work begun in 2015, train carriages become perfect backdrops for looking – fellow commuters become the artist’s unsuspecting subjects, offering another lens for observation alongside her portraiture. A magnetic sense of proximity and directness defines the work of Denver-born and New York–based artist Jordan Casteel. Renowned for her bold, larger-than-life compositions that combine luminescent colour with sinuous, intricately detailed brushwork, she collects impressions of her communities and the vibrant displays of humanity she encounters there. Whether tracing the textures and topographies of her neighbourhood or the natural ebb and flow of her surroundings, Casteel makes visible her fleeting observations of daily life, and conveys a kinship with her landscape. Her subjects – who are always a direct reflection of the communities she inhabits – almost always return the artist’s gaze. ‘What we see when we look at one of Jordan’s portraits is her ability to represent her subjects in their fullness,’ notes Thelma Golden, Director and Chief Curator of the Studio Museum in Harlem. ‘She is able to capture a sense of spirit, a sense of self, a sense of soul.’ Over the course of her career, Casteel has developed a uniquely empathetic approach to storytelling that draws on her own interest in anthropology and sociology, as well as the work of figurative painters including Alice Neel and Bob Thompson. Her portraits are intimate studies enriched with captivating detail, where her subjects’ stolen glances or interlaced hands are rendered with the same painterly care as the subtleties of their environments. Casteel forgoes the formality of the traditional studio sitting – in which power dynamics between artist and model are implicit – and captures her subjects in the very places she discovers them. For Casteel, authentic connections with the members of her community provide the foundation for authentic image-making. ‘I am meeting people where they are,’ she explains, ‘as opposed to asking them to enter my space.’ Photography plays a critical role in her practice, though no one photograph becomes the painting alone. The numerous snapshots she takes serve as an expansive memory of relational time and place. In her celebrated , an ongoing body of work begun in 2015, train carriages become perfect backdrops for looking – fellow commuters become the artist’s unsuspecting subjects, offering another lens for observation alongside her portraiture. Painting is a meditative process for Casteel that allows her to reflect on both her inner and outer worlds, exploring ideas of interconnectedness and her own identity. ‘Through painting, I have the opportunity to honor the landscape of my life and all the people who have played a huge part in it,’ she says. As Casteel’s settings change, so do the landscapes she honours. Since establishing a home in the Hudson Valley alongside her base in Harlem in earl...