Emanuel Pavao is an award winning mixed-media artist from Toronto, Canada that works with the unique medium of household tape. Duct tape, electrical tape, masking tape, etc., that is mounted on panel and sealed with a clear resin to encase the work.
"My interest in Tape Art was due in part to inspiration and the other part to frustration. I was inspired by the realist works of such artists as Chuck Close, Richard Estes, Alex Colville and Tom Forestall but I was also not satisfied working with the mediums of oil, acrylic and watercolours. The work that a few installation artists were doing with tape attracted me to it and I felt that there could be more to this medium as a fine art. My process of creation starts with a photograph that I take and base the layout of the design on. The subject matter is mostly urban streetscapes of Toronto that I create in layers of a wide variety of tape. I hope to explore the limits of what is possible with this medium of tape and with myself and at the same time capture the essence of urban life."
Emanuel has exhibited at the Toronto Artist Project, the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibit, the McMichael Gallery and multiple art galleries throughout the city. He has also been featured in the Globe and Mail, The Toronto Star, BlogTO and other publications.