Night Call – Ray Caesar

When I was young I would walk to the phone box around the corner from my mum and dads house so that I could call my boyfriend at the time in privacy. Something completely unheard these days as you can easily hide away with your mobile phone, or video chat to your hearts content.

Caesar creates eerie images with child like creatures, often portraying physical deformities and grotesque elements set against fairy tale back drops with a dark twist. The art work is rife with sexual innuendo and his work is a bit like marmite, it can either excite or repel the audience.

Elements are merged in Caesar’s work, drawing from a range of architectural and decorative styles, from Art Decò to Victorian, which add to his unique charm and making his art stand out with their own personality.

So why did I pick a picture that seemingly bucks Caesar’s unique style? The feature character is obviously womanly and shows no physical grotesqueness, the back drop while art decò in its appearance is not completely surreal…

I was drawn to this piece for the pure sexual magnetism of the women. She is beautifully turned out with her hour glass figure and alabaster skin. Her charcoals dress, revealing the red lining, as if showing her true intent of the call. She is already partially undressed with her corset unlaced, almost as if she is waiting. On top of the telephone is a statue of a child reading a book, almost as though it is symbolising the child inside her, by this I mean while she is womanly she is still fairly young looking, and it’s as though she is trying to be perceived as older.

Caesar has set his work apart and is a leading name in pop surrealism, and you can see why as his work is so iconic.