Skin Index (2025) Original Oil Painting by Ben Stephenson

Skin Index is a surreal and symbolic portrait of a golden iguana adorned with intricate Mesoamerican-inspired patterns. Clinging to a tiled grid fence that suggests both enclosure and artifice, the creature’s expression exudes a quiet defiance and introspection. The geometric motifs etched into its body evoke ancient ceramic vessels or codices, blending natural form with cultural memory. Set against a sunlit backdrop that shifts from warm golds to cool aquas, the painting invites reflection on domestication, identity, and the blurred line between reverence and restraint. This piece is part of a broader series exploring the tension between the wild and the ornamental, the sacred and the contained.

Materials used:

Oil paint on canvas

Details:

• Oil painting on Canvas
• One of a kind artwork
• Size: 40 x 60 x 2cm (unframed)
• Ready to hang
• Signed on the back
• Style: Surrealistic
• Subject: Animals and birds