About the Series
New York City artist Trina Merry’s camouflage body paint series, Cityscapes, and Skylines highlight some of the unique features of cities through an intriguing artistic lens. Completed from 2016 to 2020, Cityscapes and Skylines utilizes body painted models that blend into the background of cities. Each completed work is a reminder of the uniqueness of each image, serving as somewhat of a pseudo-fingerprint. Merry notes, “You can leave the city, but it will never leave you.” This statement is encapsulated by the images from this series.
Although the series takes root primarily in New York, it also features works from other areas including Seattle, Florence, and Toronto. The body paint concept is becoming a calling card for Merry who states, “I use human models and body paint to breathe life into landscapes. In urban scenes where the view seems so cold and lifeless, I am able to juxtapose the hard lines of architecture against the softness of human curves to create images that are thought-provoking and provocative.” This blending of humanity and structure is quite apparent in her thought-provoking visuals which focus on the theme of body positivity.
If camouflage is defined as “hiding or disguising the presence of a person, animal, or object, Merry dubs her art “Camouflage 2.0 – the ability to bring awareness to elements of life that have previously been camouflaged.” She notes that the strengths of the Cityscapes and Skylines series comes from the energy of working with a human model, an experience she describes as a “blank canvas with a heartbeat.” Each painting process can take up to three hours and requires absolute stillness from the models. The public nature of the conception of these works adds to the difficulty as well as the artistic statement.
1. Williamsburg NYC Skyline
There is perhaps no skyline in the United States more recognizable than that of New York City. The city’s myriad of established cityscapes is one of the reasons it is featured so prominently in this series. This image shows the NYC skyline from the Williamsburg neighborhood. The painting of the buildings across the chest of the model displays detailed body paint work that truly highlights Merry’s expertise, enabling her to maintain the skyline cast upon the curves of the human body.
Click to see more of Trina Merry’s NYC Camouflage Bodypaintings
2. Toronto Skyline
Situated on Lake Ontario and sporting the iconic CN Tower, Toronto’s skyline is captured in this image in her body painting gallery. The model’s pose appears welcoming to viewers. Unlike many of Merry’s works, the model in this image does not fully blend in like a ghostly apparition but rather greets the viewer, illustrating greater humanity with the arc of her arms breaking with the structure of the background a bit to create a slight bit of abstraction.
3. Los Angeles Cityscape
This image provides an interesting contrast between tradition and modernity with a defining, slightly diagonal line cut between the new glass-encased high-rises in the background and the more traditional buildings in the foreground. Here, the body paint allows the model to blend into the cityscape with ghost-like precision.
Click to view more of Trina’s Urban Camouflage Bodypaint series from around the world.
4. Brooklyn Pier Skyline
Another view from New York City, this image captures more of the natural elements of the NYC cityscape. Here, the image is snapped from an angle that allows the model to clearly be juxtaposed against the background while still highlighting the complexity of the body paint process. This image speaks to strength and confidence, a strong reminder of body positivity.
5. NYC Subway
This image stands out as quite unique from the others in this body painting gallery. The New York City subway is often maligned for its lack of cleanliness; however, this image is almost sterile in nature with sharp lines and a lack of any natural element. With his eyes closed and posture, the model appears subdued. This could speak towards the routine of the commute.
6. Guggenheim
The Guggenheim is one of the most recognizable museums in the world due to its interesting architecture. Here, a nude model clad only in tennis shoes blends into this iconic building. This image is particularly interesting due to the lack of straight lines in the cityscape, distinguishing it from many other entries into the series.
7. Florence Skyline
Here, Merry poses with her model in Florence, with the Duomo of the Florence Cathedral in the background. The model is carefully detailed with body paint to match the Italian Gothic architecture of the cityscape. The juxtaposition of the artist and the “canvas with a heartbeat” helps further illustrate the transformation that occurs in these projects.
Click to view more of Trina’s Florence Bodypaint Series
8. Oculus World Trade Center Cityscape
Perhaps one of the more moving pieces in this series, a model stands in a patriotic pose, hand-to-heart in front of One World Trade Center. Encased in hues of white and with a posture of peaceful resolve, the model speaks to a oneness of American unity, something needed once again in today’s current crisis.
9. St. John the Divine
Here, a model is paired with the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine in New York City. Note the intricate use of grays and other muted tones to create the blending effect with detail down to the lines on the highway. In this work, the body paint is rendered in a manner that makes the human subject and cityscape come together as one.
10. Seattle Skyline
Greenery is a theme in environmentally conscious Seattle. Thus, it is no surprise that Merry’s work from here captures many of the natural aspects in the cityscape along with the world famous Space Needle. Perhaps the strongest point of this work is the body positive posture and mannerisms of the human subject, who stands triumphant and statuesque.
Conclusion
While the Cityscapes and Skylines series has been developed over many years, it is interesting that the body painting series is unveiled at the current time when many of our public spaces around the world sit eerily vacant.
Merry’s work blends humanity, nature, and architecture into a singular form, highlighting the character and personality of the urban environment. This is something incredibly important in current times.
Merry makes these comments while sheltering in Dallas – away from her NYC home. Her art truly illustrates the symbiotic relationship between cities and humanity, a comforting note in current times.