Faux Fauvism: Artist invents new technique to create a kaleidoscope of colourful paintings

When you take a step back to observe the energetic paintings of Vancouver-based Canadian visual artist Josh Byer, you can't quite figure out if the swirling, chaotic colours form the basis of his work or whether he plays with monochrome lines and negative space. Either way, his art is so different, so mind-blowing – he's invented a completely new style of painting.

Known as Faux Fauvism, it's inspired by Matisse and celebrates elements of Fauvism – that is, early 20th-century French paintings, marked by the use of bold, often distorted forms and vivid colours – as well as Cubism, Pointillism and street art. Speaking of the technique to 1968 Magazine, he said: "I wish to find the edge of rational representation, to render the moment right before a composition disintegrates into pure abstraction. This is the idea that drives Faux Fauvism."

Selling his vibrant, neon artworks through various outlets across the world, Josh also has an impressive range of clients including 20th Century Fox, New Line Cinema, Nissan and MTV. He was won numerous awards from the Montreal World Film Festival, the Northwestern Film Festival, the LEOs, and Kodak Canada. Last summer, Josh was awarded his first Gold record from Sony Canada.

To discover more, visit www.byercreative.com. Or you can see an exhibition of Josh's work at his first solo show in the US, taking place at the Burien Arts Gallery in June.

Main image: Dusk

Banana Crane

Banana Crane

5 O’clock Somewhere

5 O’clock Somewhere

The Cub and the Calf

The Cub and the Calf

City

City

Strawberry Jam

Strawberry Jam

Moms

Moms

BBQ

BBQ

Share

Get the best of Creative Boom delivered to your inbox weekly