Chuck Close Dead At 81

 

CREDIT: Roberto Serra/Iguana Press/Getty Images

Chuck Close was known for his face, literally. Gigantic, up-close portraits of his face that were personal. His black-and-white Big Self-Portrait in 1968 shows every inch of his face, not a trace unseen.

Every stubble spike, every spec of uncombed hair, and every single curl from the cigarette.

From this, he went on to become one of the best portraitists of his generation.

Sadly, he passed away on August 19th.

Born in Washington State in 1940, he struggled with dyslexia as a child. One thing he always excelled at was art.

His parents were extremely supportive, paying for his art supplies and lessons.

CREDIT: Mark Lennihan/AP

In 1998, Chuck remembered staying up late, obsessing over magazine covers with a magnifying glass "trying to figure out ow painting got made."

Not only was Chuck good with paints, he was also a photographer, printmaker, and weaver.

He was most known for his huge self-portraits, and his art-world friends that were made by turning photographs into intricate grids and then blowing them up.

He developed a system with a forklift, platform, chair, and rope that assisted him in moving around the artwork easily.

In the 1970s he added colour, and was forced to make a strict change after a spinal artery collapsed leaving him mostly paralysed from the neck down in 1988.

He learned to paint again by strapping paintbrushes to his hands with Velcro. His assistants prepped his canvases with grids.

He had success in painting a portrait of former president Bill Clinton and snapping Polaroids of movie stars.

CREDIT: George Etheredge

He also faced allegations of sexual harassment from several women who came forward and made accusations saying he had made inappropriate comments about their bodies and personal lives when they came to pose for him at his studio.

"If I embarrassed anyone or made them feel uncomfortable, I am truly sorry, I didn't mean to. I acknowledge having a dirty mouth, but we're all adults," he said at the time.

In 2015, Chuck was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia. His neurologist said this could have contributed to some of his behaviour. He eventually took his last breath due to congestive heart failure at a hospital in Oceanside, New York.

He is survived by his daughters Georgia and Maggie, as well as several grandchildren.