Terry Urban The Serpent Queen II For Sale

About this work

Terry Urban's "The Serpent Queen II" commands attention through its monumental scale and masterful layering of mixed media, showcasing the artist's distinctive approach to contemporary portraiture. The work presents a striking female figure whose gaze carries an unsettling authority, her features rendered with a combination of precise detail and gestural abstraction that creates visual tension across the canvas. Urban employs his characteristic technique of building surfaces through acrylic, oil, aerosol, pastel, and airbrush, allowing each medium to contribute its unique texture and luminosity to the composition. Areas of smooth, airbrushed gradients contrast sharply with aggressive mark-making and dripping passages, suggesting both refinement and raw energy coexisting within the same frame. The serpentine motif weaves throughout the piece, appearing in sinuous forms that echo through the figure's posture and the surrounding negative space, reinforcing themes of power, transformation, and feminine mystique that recur in Urban's oeuvre. His palette balances rich, saturated tones against muted atmospheric backgrounds, creating depth while maintaining the confrontational immediacy of the subject. The emotional register oscillates between seduction and menace, inviting viewers into an intimate encounter while simultaneously asserting dominance. This work exemplifies Urban's ongoing exploration of iconic femininity filtered through street art sensibilities and fine art traditions, positioning him within a lineage of artists who blur boundaries between high and low culture. The piece demonstrates his technical versatility and his ability to create images that feel both timeless and urgently contemporary. For inquiries about acquiring "The Serpent Queen II," interested collectors are encouraged to contact Guy Hepner gallery directly.