Otto Duecker painted trompe l’oeil compositions that typically feature inanimate objects in surreal or unusual configurations, or uncanny renderings of iconic black-and-white photographs of famous 20th-century figures. Using classical techniques, Duecker painted in a style that melds Photorealism and the hyperrealistic appropriation of photographic images. In painted still lifes of photographs depicting figures such as the Dalai Lama and Marilyn Monroe, he portrays the images pinned or taped to a wall and torn, crumpled, or curling at the edges, capturing their rich tonalities and surfaces. In other work he has painted arrangements of strawberries, peppers, or pears on glass shelves, and partially unwrapped Hershey’s Kisses, their silvery foil wrappers reflected in a table surface.
Otto Duecker explored his own variation of New Realism for over thirty years. Born in 1948 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and raised in the Netherlands, Turkey and Germany, Duecker’s family eventually settled in Oklahoma. He earned a bachelor of fine arts from Oklahoma State University in 1970. He taught for over a decade while developing his unique approach to painting the human figure in precise detail.
Education: B.A. in Fine Arts - Oklahoma State University (1970)
Collections:
Polly Bergen
University of Oklahoma Museum - Fred Jones, Jr. Museum of Art
Philbrook Museum, Tulsa, OK
Brandywine Museum of Art
Victoria Principle
Danielle Steele
Sanford Besser
Walter Forbes
Ralph Lauren
Selected Solo Shows:
2020 Questions and Directions, M.A. Doran Gallery, Tulsa, OK
Otto Duecker has been exploring realism for over thirty years, creating work in a style that is unique to the genre. Much of Duecker’s early work focused on marginal members of society. He first received national attention in the 1970s for his “Drifters” series of life-size cutouts of street people. In a variety of poses, these figures stare boldly at the viewer with a precise, supernatural presence.
His fascination with history and artists has led Duecker to return to the human image in a series of trompe l’oeil paintings of strong personalities living in the 20th century. These works, in which Duecker paints “snapshots” of famous figures that appear to be casually taped to cracking surfaces, play against our expectations of the formal presentation of works of homage while startling us with their precision and beauty. Duecker captures the character and endearing wonder in the eyes of the men and women who have shaped and contributed to our world.