This 24 x 17 inch oil on canvas painting by British artist Michael Hlousek-Nagle, is titled ''The Hidden Language.' . The work depicts a portrait of a young female and a butterfly. It is a 1/2 length portrait, thus her lower half is not visible, only her lower chest and up, although it is not totally clear where her body is cut off by the composition, as she wears a black turtle neck and the dimensions of her body are not defined. Her body faces the right hand side of the composition while her head turns slight towards us at a 3/4 view, resulting in only part of the left side of her face being visible seeing as though her tilted profile blocks it. The girl's mouth is slightly ajar and her eyes look out towards the viewer. Her gaze is seemingly unbothered with little to no emotion depicted, just a simple gaze directed towards us, the audience. Her blonde hair is tied up behind her head (although a bun or ponytail is not visible to the viewer), and some loose strands of hair hang down by the ear visible to us. Her hands are clasped together (not uniformly) and held up in front of her face, just below her nose. The butterfly sits on her clasped hands The butterfly is also positioned at a 3/4ths view towards the observer, its wings not fully closed but not fully open either. Hlousek-Nagle uses a somewhat limited color palette; for the figure he really only uses black (which is used to depict the black turtle neck that the figure is wearing) and various shades of tan/beige for the figures face, hair, and hands. There is a pop of color seen in the butterfly, drawing the viewers attention, especially as it is painted in a bright, almost neon green color. The background of the painting also incorporates a pop of color; it is first black at the top of the composition and slowly fades into a vivid indigo color towards the bottom of the work, exhibiting an ombre effect. The random pops of unnatural color depicted in the background and in the butterfly, in comparison to the dullness of the black and beige used for the figure, help to create a sense of energy and excitement within the work, in contrast to the female's seemingly unengaged facial expression.
Michael Hlousek-Nagle’s work is firmly rooted in traditional practice. He works mainly in oils, graphite, or charcoal to produce work that explores a space somewhere between sensuality, nostalgia, isolation, and hope. His canvases often feature solitary figures having quiet crises of reflection and regret, or experiencing moments of epiphany, of recognition, or acceptance. They attempt to strike a balance – between acknowledging human losses, imperfections, and regrets, and being open to healing, and the possibility of inner change and transformation. His work explores the grey area between the tangible and the inward, and asks the viewer to contemplate the sad inevitability of external changes, and the hopeful possibility of internal transformation.
Michael Hlousek-Nagle’s works explore a space somewhere between sensuality, nostalgia, isolation, and hope. His canvases often feature solitary figures embodying reflection and regret, experiencing moments of quiet epiphany or acceptance. Born in Cambridge in 1971, Michael Hlousek-Nagle grew up in a small farming village in the English countryside near Oxford, and spent most of his childhood exploring the fields and forests.
