Untitled (Changing Man Blue Grey)

Born in 1926, in Antigua in the Caribbean, the genre- busting artist Frank Walter is of mixed race and descends from both owners of European descent and slaves. In 1953, Walter travelled to Europe to learn about new farming techniques. But he was hugely disillusioned: a victim of discrimination and racism, he struggled to survive and his physical and mental health were severely affected. The colour of his skin and his roots became an obsession.
Returning to the Caribbean in the 1960s, he eventually established himself as a photographer. In his cryptic notes and memoirs, and through his small paintings, often made on damaged materials, he reveals a complex world where fiction and autobiographical reality intermingle. 

In Untitled (Changing Man Blue Grey), Frank Walter depicts himself with blue skin, like a super-hero able to change his skin colour according to the context. Through his paintings, and his imaginary self-portraits in particular, a collection of which is held by the Pinault Collection, Frank Walter travels through time and alters the course of destiny, escaping into a fantastical epic.