Anonymous Citizens

The Anonymous Citizen paintings, a project that I have been working on for the past three years, aims to challenge the popular idea of naming while investigating the use of color as if it were a machine. Since color is unique to the viewer, and one color can’t exist without another, the focus is on the relationships of colors versus color in isolation, and can be seen as a metaphor for identity when imperialism is critiqued as a system not an event. I employ an intuitive approach, emphasizing improvisation and process rather than a preconceived traditional portrait.  

“To know Renee is to understand her need to constantly engage with contemporary critical discourse around race, class, gender, and the intersections therein. She employs the rich vernacular of Abstract Expressionism in her own work, while exploiting its tropes and pitfalls.”

Suzy Spence