Karel Funk 1971, Winnipeg, Canada. Lives and works in Winnipeg The men in these paintings are my male peers. This autobiographical context allows me to examine their surfaces with an intimacy that is ubiquitous. All of the men face away from the viewer or have their eyes covered. They appeared to be unaware of the viewer’s presence, allowing their surfaces to be scrutinized. Narrative relations between the figures and the white backgrounds are subdued, allowing formal painting issues to become essential. Special consideration in the arranging of personal attributes and accessories helps to create tactile visual contrasts between surfaces. These surfaces become places where the subject’s textures resonate in a subjective application of paint. Selected group exhibitions: 2002: Painting as Paradox, Artists Space, New York; 2001: Grand Jury 6, Art Gallery, Winnipeg; 2000: Figuring The Future, Site Gallery, Winnipeg; 1999: Grand Jury 5, Art Gallery, Winnipeg.	Untitled, 2002. Acrylic on panel, 46 x 46 cm. Courtesy Jeffrey Deitch, New York. Untitled, 2002. Acrylic on panel, 39 x 39 cm. Courtesy Jeffrey Deitch, New York. Untitled, 2002. Acrylic on panel, 46 x 36 cm. Courtesy Courtesy Nancy and Joel Portnoy .