I had an idea to use a tiger mask for a long time, I kept this for almost a year, was not so sure how it would integrate with my current body of work. Here the only human part we can see is his neck, we can associate his skin with someone old and this could be the continuation of my portraits that depict old people. Or it could just be a parenthesis. The painting was inspired by a Japanese print, I wanted to integrate both the tiger and the blue tint. The painting is applied quite thick, which is in contrast to the very thin washes of Japanese painting, but I wanted to give him a lot of depth and make some rich textures composed of whites and greys. The painting is oil on canvas mounted on a wooden stretcher. It comes shipped very carefully in a box directly from Mihai Cotiga’s studio. The painting is hand signed on the back and it will come with a certificate of authenticity. Mihai Cotiga is a painter based in Bucharest, Romania, whose works have been exhibited nationally and internationally. He uses his life events and thoughts to bring meaning into his work being driven by the curiosity to understand what is around us and the passion to always learn something new. Exhibitions: 2023 - Group show - Figures 2023 - CICA Museum - Gimpo, South Korea - August - September 2021 - Group show - Fusion Arts Fair 2021 - Bucharest, Romania - June 2018 - Group show - Singular-Art, Nijmegen, Netherlands - May-September 2016 - Personal exhibition - University "Spiru Haret" - March-April 2013 - Personal exhibition - Museum of Bucharest - November If you want to see more paintings, here is a link to the artist's instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mihaicotigapaints/ or @mihaicotigapaints