Bird duet left, Circa 2020

CJ Pyle  

Ballpoint pen, colored pencil, ink on found paper.

CJ Pyle (born in 1956) lives and works in Richmond, Indiana. From a working-class background, he began drawing at a young age, encouraged by his mother, and learned on his own using books.

While pursuing a career as a drummer in local rock bands, he drew relentlessly, using his free time to hone his skills. Around the year 2000, he reached a turning point, developing his signature portraits and finding a fully realized artistic path.

Fascinated by portraiture, Pyle creates anthropomorphic figures with varied personalities, oscillating between introspection and offbeat expressiveness. He works with ballpoint pen and pencil on recycled materials, notably the backs of 1980s vinyl record sleeves, whose texture and historical significance he appreciates.

After more than thirty years of practice, he has forged a unique visual language, based on the repetition of gesture and the constant exploration of its limits. His two-tone portraits, both understated and expressive, are now the hallmark of his work.

"I like to create portraits in two colors; I don't really know why, it's instinctive. Even as a child, I focused on drawing faces. I also find it much more stimulating to create an image with a limited palette than with a multitude of colors."