The Abstract Avatar Portraits of Filthy Fluno

Screenshot of Spyder Mycron; Abstract Portrait of Mycron by Filthy Fluno/Jeff Lipsky

Yesterday, the New York Times devoted much of a Sunday magazine feature to the Second Life-based artwork of Boston painter Jeff Lipsky, known in-world as Filthy Fluno, so I thought I'd share this sample of his work, and a conversation I had with him several months ago.  Much of his artwork are portraits of avatars, but not in ways you might expect.  With a deft style that evokes abstract expressionists like Kadinsky and De Kooning (among others), Fluno renders the essence of an avatar into abstract angles and vibrant colors. 

Avatars are themselves a kind of self-portrait, metaphorically conveying essential aspects of their character which might otherwise remain hidden.  (After all, someone who fashions his avatar into a seven foot warrior isn't communicating a secret desire to slay actual dragons, but more often, something more poignant: a yearning for moral clarity, perhaps, or an aspiration of greater agency.)  In other words, Filthy Fluno is creating abstract portraits of abstracted self-portraits, seeking to paint the essence through several layers of mediation.  Count them:  The person behind the avatar; the technical choices the person makes, in making that avatar; the avatar itself, as it's displayed in the virtual world; Jeff Lipsky's perception of the avatar, as seen from his diplay.

Take the images above:

At left is the avatar of Spyder Mycron, in real life an artist who's also an Iraqi refugee; at right, Fluno's portrait of Mycron.  In his telling, Mycron fled Iraq after the American-led invasion of his country, and moved to Jordan.  And while others might have animosity, Fluno told me, "[Mycron] still uses SL to build bridges to with people/artists like me from the US."  This inspired is what inspired Fluno to paint him, he tells me.

"I just go with what I know and feel. " Filthy Fluno continued, explaining his approach, "Intuition.  Colors are often inspired by colors I see on and around the avatar.  Shapes take form as I layer spontaneously, as well as imagery of stories the avatars share with me.  But again... intuition plays a role."

Mycron screenshot courtesy of the avatar; Spider Mycron portrait copyright of Jeff Lipsky aka Filthy Fluno, available for sale on his website