Philip Repp is a retired associate professor of art and dean of architecture. His drawings confront the stylized allure found in the caryatid. Repp’s work conveys the struggle with idealized beauty and his own male gaze. He is influenced by the masters Michelangelo, Manet, Degas, Rodin, Klimt, and Schiele and their search to bring candor and emotion to the figure.

Repp uses traditional materials, charcoal and pastel on paper, employing the often imprecise results to portray the uncertainty of beauty. He sometimes collages drawings during the search for the right expression. The figure often takes on new tendencies as he works.

Repp is fascinated with Ghost Signs - advertising murals with their blistering and peeling paint on the walls of older buildings. The images left by these signs, that were once apparent, have faded and become obscure; however, with their deterioration, something new emerges.