Portraiture

Big G is part of a series of works called Zen Rogue Portraits that have grown out of Vilas’s interest in the role of figurative art in ritual and worship.
Combining his interest in religious statuary, devotional imagery and his own inner practice, he shows alternatives to the accepted western view of what constitutes spirituality.
Rather than repeat and reinforce traditional depictions of holiness (for example haloed saints), Vilas has tried to show vulnerable characters whose innate goodness may not be readily apparent.
The Zen Rogue characters may be seen as works in progress, ???saints-in-the-making??? rather than finished, perfected beings.
Big G is a homage to a portrait bust of St Gregory the Moor by an unknown German artist

The holes in the body suggest that they could be paraded round the streets during religious festivals. Most reliquaries also have holes and openings where people can peer inside hoping to catch a glimpse of something special.