Collection: Alex Sibug

Soft pastels are one of the most underrated yet difficult media to master for any artist worth their salt. Compressed sticks of dry pigment seem simple enough a concept, and indeed, seem straight forward enough to apply on paper substrate. However, given the physical properties of the medium, a certain dexterity is required to ensure smooth application, and even more skill to do so in a manner that captures reality. It takes an artist of immense technical ability and an intimate understanding of how vision works to be able to successfully manipulate the medium and transform mere sticks of compressed powdery color into images that trick the eye into believing the reality of the composition.

Such an artist is Alex "Bugsy" Sibug. His exquisite artworks in the difficult medium of soft pasters are done in the technically exacting tromped l'oeil technique. The term comes from the French tongue, which literally means "to deceive the eye." Meticulously and painstakingly rendered to mimic reality, Sibug's compositions are the quintessential definition of illusion, successfully tricking the viewer's definition of illusion, successfully tricking the viewer's eyes into believing that the pigments carefully and strategically laid out on paper by the masterful hand of the artists.