Hardcore

Hardcore

Oil on Canvas
12 in. (30.48 cm) x 10 in. (25.4 cm) x 1.25 in. (3.175)

"When the image for Hardcore first came to me, I read it as a metaphor for someone’s dependency on temptation. A habit can build to the point where it becomes your center of gravity. You end up scheduling life around it, and before you realize it, that habit isn’t just part of your world — it’s the center of it."

“Hardcore” is a figurative oil painting that depicts a body’s full weight pressing down on a single apple, shown through the intertwined forms of two hands and two feet gripping tightly around the fruit. The skin tones are painted with striking realism, showing veins, tendons, and subtle warmth against a muted gray-blue background, while the bright red apple glows at the center as a symbol of temptation, fragility, and human dependence. This compact 10x12 inch oil on canvas merges modern realism with symbolic still life, making it an evocative work for collectors seeking surreal figurative paintings, contemporary realism, and art exploring the tension between body and object.