Metaphysical Portraits

  Jack Cassady’s “The Basement Boys” are part of a series of paintings, prints and digital collographs called the “Metaphysical Portraits”. The series was carried into print with 15 large multicolored (stone) lithographic prints.

  The concept for this series of images started one day in 1981, The artist was looking for something new to paint and his neighbour (in the studio next door at 1179A King St. West in Parkdale) happened in and sat down.  A shadow (from a spot light) of his profile projected on a piece of paper Jack had pinned up, so Jack traced it, cut out a stencil and kept playing, thinking about the inside versus the outside of a person, the different hats people wear, what they project and what they hold in. Playing with shape, symbols, texture and color, he found the painting to be exciting and fresh.  So Jack painted all the guys/artists in the basement of his building, thus the title Basement Boys.  In print, it was a bit different, Jack had to plan more, the painting served as a starting point, and the artist was able to expand the depth and breath of the images.  The prints have met with some success and have been exhibited around the world and are in numerous public and private collections.