Gavin Turk’s Talisman transforms the ancient symbol of the evil eye into a contemporary meditation on perception, power, and the gaze. Rendered in acrylic on canvas, the painting depicts the iconic amulet with its concentric rings of blue and white, evoking the talisman traditionally believed to repel the harmful effects of envy or malevolent intent. The work harnesses this age-old belief to interrogate the enduring complexities of looking and being looked at, a central concern in art history and philosophy.

The evil eye amulet, deeply rooted in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cultures, encapsulates a paradox: it functions both as a protective shield and as a recognition of vulnerability, suggesting that the act of being seen carries an inherent danger. In Talisman, Turk harnesses this duality to explore the dynamic between subject and object. The painting invites the viewer to consider their own role in the exchange of gazes, destabilising conventional notions of agency and power. In this interplay, the viewer becomes the subject, scrutinising the amulet’s ominous gaze, while the painted eye, as the object, seemingly observes and reflects the viewer’s intent. The question arises: who wields the power, and who bears the curse?

Turk’s engagement with the gaze situates Talisman within a broader lineage of artistic and theoretical inquiry. The work echoes the psychoanalytic explorations of Jacques Lacan, who posited the gaze as a site of tension between self and other, subject and object. Similarly, Talisman recalls Édouard Manet’s Olympia (1863), where the direct gaze of the reclining figure disrupts the traditional power dynamic between viewer and subject. Turk’s work, however, depersonalises this encounter, transforming it into a universal and timeless exchange, anchored in the mythology of the eye.

In its stark rendering, Talisman resonates with the bold iconography of Pop Art, recalling Jasper Johns’s Target paintings, where repeated motifs similarly invite a dialogue about perception and meaning. Yet Turk’s work departs from Pop’s playful detachment, instead imbuing his image with an unsettling charge. The amulet’s unblinking gaze serves as both a talismanic shield and an accusation, compelling viewers to confront their own relationship to envy, desire, and vulnerability. Through its examination of the gaze, Talisman also engages with feminist art practices that critique the objectification of the body and the power of observation, as seen in works like Cindy Sherman’s Untitled Film Stills or Barbara Kruger’s iconic text-based pieces. Turk’s abstraction of the eye removes it from any corporeal context, turning it into a universal cipher for power dynamics in viewing.

In Talisman, Turk masterfully combines ancient symbolism with contemporary intellectual currents, creating a painting that is both visually striking and conceptually profound. It encapsulates his ability to weave cultural, historical, and philosophical threads into a work that is as provocative as it is resonant.