LAURA CHAKRAVORTY | paintings
“I WANT MY PAINTINGS TO EXPOSE THE NAKED BODY AS AN EXAGGERATED MASS IN SUCH A WAY THAT FORCES A VIEWER TO INTERACT WITH THE WORK MORE INTIMATELY.
Using my palette, I aim to saturate areas of the subject to achieve a kind of confrontation with the flesh.”
Laura Chakravorty is an English-born painter, living and working in Toronto, Canada. She recently moved to Canada from London, England, where she had studied and pursued a career in the fashion industry. However, quite early on in her tailoring studies Chakravorty realised that it was not the structure of the materials that actually fascinated her, it was the structure of the naked human physique itself.
After this realisation Chakravorty shifted from fashion to painting. She focused on the human form painted from an up-close and personal modern perspective – angular, at times distended, with a complete democracy of which parts of the body were to be foregrounded.
Chakravorty’s oil painting technique is a lengthy and unique process where she uses her fingers almost as much as she uses her brushes; waiting for the oil to become almost tacky in order to manipulate and sculpt the paint into place, as if rubbing a cream or moisturiser onto the skin of the canvas to shape her ample figures.
This technique is evident in her latest works, a 5-part series of life-size self portraits titled Day’s End. Chakravorty’s goal is to flip portraiture on its head so to speak, where the subject’s personality, emotion and experience is exhibited not via the face as is typical, but via the manipulation of the body itself: in this case, focusing primarily on the feet.
In 2016, Chakravorty plans to exhibit her works and develop a new series.

Oil on Canvas
Friday; a life-sized nude self portrait by English-born Painter Laura Chakravorty, living and working in Toronto, Canada.
Friday is one of a 5-part series titled ‘Days End’. Each painting within the series is a reflection of the working week (Monday – Friday), exhibiting the strains and stresses of the day-to-day via an up-close and personal modern perspective. Where the subject’s personality, emotion and experience is exhibited not via the face as is typical, but via the manipulation of the body itself: in this case, focusing primarily on the feet – flipping portraiture on it’s head!
60×36″
Oil on Canvas
Tuesday; a life-sized nude self portrait by English-born Painter Laura Chakravorty, living and working in Toronto, Canada.
Tuesday is one of a 5-part series titled ‘Days End’. Each painting within the series is a reflection of the working week (Monday – Friday), exhibiting the strains and stresses of the day-to-day via an up-close and personal modern perspective. Where the subject’s personality, emotion and experience is exhibited not via the face as is typical, but via the manipulation of the body itself: in this case, focusing primarily on the feet – flipping portraiture on it’s head!
36×60″
Oil on Canvas
Wednesday; a life-sized nude self portrait by English-born Painter Laura Chakravorty, living and working in Toronto, Canada.
Wednesday is one of a 5-part series titled ‘Days End’. Each painting within the series is a reflection of the working week (Monday – Friday), exhibiting the strains and stresses of the day-to-day via an up-close and personal modern perspective. Where the subject’s personality, emotion and experience is exhibited not via the face as is typical, but via the manipulation of the body itself: in this case, focusing primarily on the feet – flipping portraiture on it’s head!
36×60″
Oil on Canvas
Monday; a life-sized nude self portrait by English-born Painter Laura Chakravorty, living and working in Toronto, Canada.
Monday is one of a 5-part series titled ‘Days End’. Each painting within the series is a reflection of the working week (Monday – Friday), exhibiting the strains and stresses of the day-to-day via an up-close and personal modern perspective. Where the subject’s personality, emotion and experience is exhibited not via the face as is typical, but via the manipulation of the body itself: in this case, focusing primarily on the feet – flipping portraiture on it’s head!
36×60
Oil on Canvas
Thursday; a life-sized nude self portrait by English-born Painter Laura Chakravorty, living and working in Toronto, Canada.
Thursday is one of a 5-part series titled ‘Days End’. Each painting within the series is a reflection of the working week (Monday – Friday), exhibiting the strains and stresses of the day-to-day via an up-close and personal modern perspective. Where the subject’s personality, emotion and experience is exhibited not via the face as is typical, but via the manipulation of the body itself: in this case, focusing primarily on the feet – flipping portraiture on it’s head!