SHANE STEPHENS
Shane 'CARAKTR' Stephens is a self taught Canadian urban aesthetic artist. Working predominantly in a stencil medium, the Toronto native produces modern portraiture that captures the essence of beauty and emotion through figurative stencils combined with urban, abstract and graffiti techniques. His work is known to push the boundaries of how one perceives the sense of bliss vs sorrow and beauty vs visually ill-favoured.
In his earlier days as an artist, he spent much of his free time drawing in black books and doodling on anything he could find. He started developing his craft in grade school, diving into any art project presented with passion and a unique sense of creativity. This quickly flourished into personal projects of his own producing paintings, portraits, signs and murals around various cities he resided.
A short stay in Edmonton, Alberta opened his eyes to influences of realist art and photography, which later became the focal subjects in his work. Inspired by the cities urban architecture and influenced by graffiti culture, he began using graffiti "throw ups", tags and urban decay as a form of βaction paintingβ in his work to symbolize mental freedom and vulnerability.
Over the past few years, Shane has developed a unmistakable aesthetic combining the gritty, ruggedness of urban imagery, adding a colourful touch that delivers a sense of visual demand. Infused with figurative beauty to create emotionally striking images now seen in homes, hotels and streets across Canada.
