Portrait of a middle-aged man, the travails of many hard years visible on his face. Tommy Cheng's use of light in this painting does much to establish the tone and mood of the piece—the man's face, half in the shadows, has a look of quiet desperation.

Tommy Cheng is a contemporary outsider and folk artist who lives and paints in Washington Heights. His unique style of portraiture has attracted gallery shows in New York, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Atlanta, and Paris. Cheng's portraits are inspired by pop culture and celebrities. With its wide open eyes, deceivingly expressive faces, and modernly flat construction a Cheng portrait is instantly identifiable.

Artist: Tommy Cheng

Material: Acrylic on plywood

TC-#63