Skip to main content
Video Loading
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 15

Peter Lupkin
Intimate Portrait Oil Painting on Canvas, Bold Colors, 16x12 in

2024

$1,800
£1,345.55
€1,552.12
CA$2,520
A$2,662.80
CHF 1,432.07
MX$31,878.65
NOK 17,942.13
SEK 16,432.38
DKK 11,592.50

About the Item

This oil painting captures a direct, intimate presence through bold, emotive color and textured brushwork. Warm reds, pinks, and ochres pulse across the face, interrupted by deep blues that carve shadow and structure, giving the portrait a sense of inner tension and depth. The frontal gaze feels steady yet vulnerable, as if the subject is quietly holding their ground. The softened, monochromatic background amplifies the emotional weight of the figure, allowing the layered paint and subtle shifts in expression to convey resilience, introspection, and lived experience. Breaking Introductory Essay for the Exhibition Catalog: Drifting is a motorsport in which drivers intentionally make their cars slide sideways through a turn by breaking the rear wheels loose from the pavement. Instead of slowing down to regain traction, the driver controls the skid using throttle, steering, and balance. The goal is not speed, but style: the angle of the slide, the smoothness of the motion, the precision of the driving line, and—when two cars drift together—how closely they can maintain their sideways dance without touching. Rooted in Japanese car culture and now practiced worldwide, drifting is a community-driven, largely self-funded pursuit where most participants receive no money. They build, break, and rebuild their own cars for the love of the craft, the thrill of the challenge, and the bonds formed along the way. It is within this world that Peter Lupkin created Breaking. The exhibition’s title refers not only to the technical moment when a car “breaks” traction and enters the drift, but also to Team Breaking, the Fort Wayne–based drifting group that welcomed Lupkin into their inner circle. Their garages, late-night gatherings, shared meals, and relentless tinkering became the foundation for this body of work. Lupkin did not observe from the sidelines—he immersed himself, riding along in passenger seats, sitting on concrete floors, and absorbing the rhythms and rituals that define this tight-knit community. This embedded approach aligns with what Lupkin calls “Gonzo Portraiture,” inspired by the immersive journalism of Hunter S. Thompson. Rather than depict drifting from the perspective of an outsider, Lupkin paints from within the ecosystem of Team Breaking. This perspective allows him to capture the side of drifting that rarely appears in media: not the smoke-filled spectacle, but the human moments that shape the culture—the fatigue after a long day at the track, the camaraderie of shared food, the quiet concentration of a late-night repair, or the tenderness of a teammate cradling a stray cat. Painterly texture plays a central role. Lupkin’s expressive brushwork—charged with electric blues, bruised reds, and luminous flesh tones—echoes the physicality of drifting itself. Helmets recur as symbols of identity, protection, and transformation. Materials from the racetrack—tire dust, chain-link impressions, automotive paint—embed the environment directly into the paintings, reinforcing the connection between subject and setting. While the content is contemporary, echoes of art history appear throughout. Lupkin’s figures are arranged with the reverence of classical portraiture: hints of halos, triangular compositions, and devotional lighting elevate his subjects beyond stereotype. These are not caricatures of “car guys,” but individuals rendered with dignity, complexity, and empathy. What emerges is a portrait of drifting not as adrenaline-driven spectacle but as community. Despite the appearance of being a solitary sport, drifting relies on collaboration: friends sourcing parts, hands helping with repairs, collective knowledge freely shared, meals and stories exchanged long into the night. Lupkin captures that interdependence with sincerity and affection. In Breaking, losing traction becomes a metaphor for the delicate balance between chaos and control, individuality and belonging. Lupkin invites viewers to look past the noise and smoke and see the humanity behind the sport—the friendships, frustrations, humor, and unexpected tenderness that animate the world of Team Breaking. Ultimately, Breaking is not about cars. It is about people, connection, devotion, and the stories that emerge when individuals gather around a shared passion and build a culture of their own. Peter Lupkin @jonxxlewis oil on canvas 16h x 12w in 17.25h x 13.25w x 2d in (framed) 40.64h x 30.48w cm PLU090 Peter Lupkin’s artwork is rooted in a sustained inquiry into perception, memory, and the emotional resonance of form. His compositions unfold slowly, favoring nuance over declaration, and reward close looking through subtle variations in surface, rhythm, and spatial balance. Rather than depicting fixed narratives, Lupkin creates open fields of experience where structure and intuition coexist, allowing meaning to remain fluid and personal. Across his body of work, restraint becomes a generative force. Quiet gestures, layered elements, and carefully calibrated tensions invite contemplation, suggesting states of transition rather than resolution. The work often feels suspended in time—hovering between presence and absence—encouraging viewers to project their own memories and associations into the visual space. In this way, Lupkin’s art functions less as an object to be read and more as an encounter to be felt, emphasizing attentiveness, stillness, and the power of subtle transformation.
  • Creator:
    Peter Lupkin (1986, American)
  • Creation Year:
    2024
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 16 in (40.64 cm)Width: 12 in (30.48 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    Chicago, IL
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: PLU0901stDibs: LU554317523032

More From This Seller

View All
Contemplative Portrait Painting, Oil on Canvas, 16x12 in, Signed
By Peter Lupkin
Located in Chicago, IL
This painting from Peter Lupkin's 2025 exhibition, "Breaking" at Gallery VICTOR, Chicago presents a contemplative portrait rendered in expressive, layered brushstrokes. Cool blues an...
Category

2010s Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Self Portrait - Original Oil Painting by Peter Lupkin
By Peter Lupkin
Located in Chicago, IL
Full of texture and color, Lupkin depicts an emotional portrait of himself. The intricate color choices of light pinks and blues throughout the skin and background bring a somber fee...
Category

2010s Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Intimate Portrait of Drifting Driver, Oil on Canvas, 2025, Signed
By Peter Lupkin
Located in Chicago, IL
This oil painting presents a quiet, reflective profile shaped by thick, energetic brushstrokes. Cool blues saturate the background, setting off the warm, earthy tones of the face and...
Category

2010s Contemporary Figurative Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Portrait of John - Original Oil Painting - Peter Lupkin
By Peter Lupkin
Located in Chicago, IL
Peter Lupkin utilizes his expressive paint style to bring this small scale self portrait to life. With pockets of color and texture throughout the face, the subject pops against a ne...
Category

2010s Paintings

Materials

Oil

Self Portrait - Original Oil Painting by Peter Lupkin
By Peter Lupkin
Located in Chicago, IL
Peter Lupkin utilizes his expressive paint style to bring this small scale self portrait to life. With pockets of color and texture throughout the face, the subject pops against a ne...
Category

2010s Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

Self Portrait - Original Oil Painting by Peter Lupkin
By Peter Lupkin
Located in Chicago, IL
Peter Lupkin utilizes his expressive paint style to bring this small scale self portrait to life. With pockets of color and texture throughout the face, the subject pops against a ne...
Category

2010s Portrait Paintings

Materials

Canvas, Oil

You May Also Like

UNTITLED m1131 - Original Oil painting portrait, Painting, Oil on Canvas
By David Padworny
Located in Yardley, PA
Original Oil Paint on Gallery Wrapped Stretched Canvas of 16 by 12 by 3/4 in. ::::: Title : UNTITLED m1131 :: Painting :: Expressionism :: This piece comes with an official certifica...
Category

2010s Expressionist Paintings

Materials

Oil

Ryan: Contemporary Abstract Oil Painting
By Alysha Grace Marko
Located in New York, NY
"Ryan" is a contemporary figurative oil painting completed in the summer of 2022, featuring a man in front of an abstract background. The contrast between the extreme abstraction of the background and the figurative foreground makes for a striking and energetic piece. The model of the piece is Ryan, a close friend of the painter. On one summer night after a few glasses of wine, Alysha decided to paint Ryan in her studio. "I love painting from life, it translates so much better for me," said the artist. Alysha Marko It’s About Time, 2022 Oil on canvas 36 x 36 in Artist biography: Born in Central Jersey, Alysha Grace Marko...
Category

2010s Contemporary Portrait Paintings

Materials

Oil

UNTITLED m1117 - Original Oil painting portrait, Painting, Oil on Canvas
By David Padworny
Located in Yardley, PA
Original Oil Paint on Gallery Wrapped Stretched Canvas of 12 by 16 by 3/4 in. ::::: Title : UNTITLED m1117 :: Painting :: Expressionism :: This piece comes with an official certific...
Category

2010s Expressionist Paintings

Materials

Oil

oil portrait, Painting, Oil on Wood Panel
By Edward Zelinsky
Located in Yardley, PA
Portrait of a Dutch friend :: Painting :: Contemporary :: This piece comes with an official certificate of authenticity signed by the artist :: Ready to Hang: No :: Signed: Yes :: Si...
Category

Early 2000s Contemporary Paintings

Materials

Oil

UNTITLED m1041 - Original oil painting portrait, Painting, Oil on Canvas
By David Padworny
Located in Yardley, PA
Original Oil Paint on Gallery Wrapped Stretched Canvas of 20 by 16 by 3/4 in. UNTITLED m1041 :: Painting :: Impressionist :: This piece comes with an official certificate of authenti...
Category

2010s Impressionist Paintings

Materials

Oil

UNTITLED m1074 - Original oil painting portrait, Painting, Oil on Canvas
By David Padworny
Located in Yardley, PA
Original Oil Paint on Gallery Wrapped Stretched Canvas of 20 by 16 by 3/4 in. UNTITLED m1074 :: Painting :: Impressionist :: This piece comes with an official certificate of authenti...
Category

2010s Impressionist Paintings

Materials

Oil