Honor Titus

Honor Titus (born 1989) is an American artist who lives and works in Los Angeles. A self-taught painter, Titus is deeply influenced by his creative past as a musician and poet. Titus’s paintings, often suffused with a sense of romance, are embedded with nostalgic references to a simpler time and feature dark, luminous jewel tones. His works often depict faceless figures in minimal urban landscapes, reflecting the isolation that stems from metropolitan anonymity. Titus’s simplified compositions and striking patches of color are inspired by Les Nabis while his flat, decorative surfaces echo the graphic hyperrealism of artists inspired by American advertising, such as Alex Katz.

This, the artist’s first trade monograph, presents new and recent works, including a body of work presented in his 2022–3 solo exhibition at Timothy Taylor, London, Bourgeoisie in Bloom. Here Titus expands on the themes of ritual, class, and nostalgia that have characterized previous work, incorporating debutante balls in which young adults are presented to society. Favoring bright panels of color, Titus evokes traditions of cultural formality, using precise brushwork to delineate details of old-world glamor such as the tilt of a bow tie and the line of a ballgown.

A foreword by artist Henry Taylor considers his first encounters with Titus’s work and their continuing friendship. Taylor describes the biographical factors that inform the subjects Titus paints, including music, referencing the first solo show of the artist’s work held at Henry Taylor Gallery in Chinatown, 2020. A text by Durga Chew-Bose brings the themes of nostalgia and memory into the field of discussion. Anecdotes relayed to Chew-Bose bring forward real experiences in relation with his work. The artist’s own words illuminate filmic, musical, photographic, and romantic influences on the paintings, while dwelling, lastly, upon his studio space. Klaus Ottmann’s text reflects philosophically and sociologically on Titus’s oeuvre, bringing key art historical reference points into the discussion. Ottmann’s contribution draws connections to key works of literature and criticism that contextualize his work.

Published following the exhibition Honor Titus: Bourgeoisie in Bloom at Timothy Taylor, London, November 17, 2022 – January 14, 2023, the publication has been edited by Chloe Waddington, designed by Joe Gilmore, and co-published in 2023 by Timothy Taylor and Anomie Publishing, London.