Art Interiors Archives - Page 4 of 7

The Curated Collection | Lori-Ann Bellissimo

Today for Monday’s Curated Collection art feature I thought we’d do something a little different! Lori-Ann Bellissimo – an internationally successful abstract artist – has graciously taken the time to do a little interview with me to give us a behind-the-scenes look at her process and the woman behind the paintings.

1. You recently spent quite a bit of time in Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur. How has your time in residence and traveling in Asia influenced your work?

I’ve done three residences in Malaysia and had solo exhibits in both Kuala Lumpur and Singapore and I’ve been part of many group exhibits there with two different galleries. Right now my work is in a group exhibition at The Gallery @ Star Hill in KL. My time in Asia has always served me well with new experiences in tropical settings and the fast paced art world of Asia. I am very grateful to be a foreign, female successful artist in that part of the world and it’s garnered many privileges from sold out exhibitions, to having many prestigious clients and collectors.

Originally I kept shipping works over to Asia from Toronto, commissions and so forth, and with everything selling quickly it was logical to move there for a while over a five year period. From my very first visit, I sensed these opportunities to be rare so my work developed from my experiences there, first by mapping out the ancient, present day and future skies and constellations of the locale and crating works in challenging methods. For example, the series “Site Specific” included works on plexiglass which I hand carved zodiacal symbols into which glow in the dark while an abstract painting in layers of resin atop these carvings can be viewed by day.

had never had collectors knocking on my studio door at 3am vying to purchase my next completed work before anyone else saw it. My second series done in Asia was entitled “Trust Is Earned” and it coincided with personal decisions to be more discerning as to who I interact with and led me to quite a spiritual (not religious) door which I consider to be the greets gift as an Artist. Of course all my work has to do with childhood influences such as Galileo or Leonardo and astrology and now I’m painting astrological charts for people as part of my on-going series “Galileo’s Assistant.” In fact I just completed an astro chart painting for one very famous fashion designer!

2. Your work has a great deal of layering of mixed media and colour using resin to build incredible depth. Can you describe your process for us? Is it one of intuition or of strategic planning? How do you cast the vision for each of your pieces?

My materials are all ecologically safe and I keep them close to me as I’ve had them formulated to my needs over years. I like to say I work in literal Photoshop, as I paint and lay down a layer of resin and paint some more and so on to create depth which unfortunately does not show up so well on the web. Collectors who buy online are always well-surprised by what they receive so this is pleasant to know. I don’t sketch or plan too much, usually planning goes as far as a concept or materials or a basic method but really I hone my intuition and let myself be guided when I’m working. It’s a real form of meditation if you will.

3. How do you know when each piece is complete?

Ah, this is certainly a tried and true question! I’m painting even when I’m not physically in front of my work. I’m thinking about colour and so on when I’m on a bus or walking by some textiles in a shop window. The colour of pavement can hold my attention and I think how to mix that certain shade…So there really isn’t an answer to your question, I just know. Sometimes I keep a work around for months before realizing I’m satisfied with it. Other times I try to leave one painting before it’s done and move onto the next to see if i can widen my scope and then I jump back to the first. There’s no formula thank goodness as I’m a fan of unlimited living not restriction.

4. Which artists have had the greatest influence on you? Whose work do you most admire?

When I moved to Milan before starting a studio up in Rome, I was alone and spent many days and nights with my favourites: Leonardo and Galileo with a lot of Fellini thrown in of course! They were my first Italian ‘friend’s. I actually prefer music to art and right now I’m being fed African music and somehow I think it’s organically linked to the graphic design elements in my latest series ‘the Bigger Picture” which I showed last March with De Luca Fine Art in Toronto. The other day someone reminded me of Bridget Riley so I like her. I like Cecily Brown and of course Ai Wei Wei…Joseph Beuys is someone I’ve admired for his work and life since my teen years. It’s a real gamut of love when it comes to artists I like. In Italy I saw Lucio Fontana and fell in love. I like architecture very much, Jean Nouvel and Lord Norman Foster being my favourites. I’ve been influenced by my surroundings so the idea of ‘place’ is big my heart. I also like James Turrell. His light installations are beautiful experiences!

5. What are your 5 favourite cities in the world, and what do you love about them?

Rome is pretty much tops with me. There’s nothing like taking the subway to a stop called Collosseo and low and behold The Colosseum is right there! I could spend a lifetime there and have a real melancholic sense about it each time I see an Italian film or a TVO documentary showing the streets or gardens of Rome. I love beaches and seasides too. Italy in fact with it’s lovely seaside towns of Calabria and up and down the coasts make more than 5! Of course I love Kuala Lumpur with its chaos and grandeur all at the same time. Right now I have my sites on cities of France and I want to go to various towns in Brazil but I’m loving Toronto right now. It’s a good place to be and I’m very appreciative of what Canada offers me. I also love San Francisco, New York, Barcelona and Dubai!

6. What do you do as an artist to recharge and get inspired?

Only once I’ve been truly exhausted after making 21 paintings in KL over a three month period. Then I went off to an island and took some deep water swims and had a few drinks! Otherwise I’ve come to the point where I am able to draw on set backs not only pleasure for inspiration. This is my greatest accomplishment in many ways. I like to live where I work so even if I’m not painting long hours I am always looking at my work in progress. I do a lot of swimming and take deep breaths and a glass of wine helps too.

I hope Lori-Ann’s process and her beautiful paintings have inspired you. Her work is available through my favourite Toronto gallery, Art Interiors, and I strongly encourage you to give them a visit to take a look at Lori-Ann’s paintings in person. The photos really don’t begin to do them justice!

Thank you so much for sharing with us, Lori-Ann!

xo
s.

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|July 22nd, 2013|0 Comments

The Curated Collection | Sara Caracristi

I have a confession to make: I have a rather interesting relationship with figurative paintings. I suppose on a simple level, one would call it a love-hate relationship. I love the power of figurative work to evoke emotion, but I do not love the way that some figurative work forces me to feel a part of a story that doesn’t feel like my own. This seems particularly true for me with most figurative portraits. As a result, I have a lot more abstracts and landscapes in my personal art collection than I do figurative work. In fact, until recently coming across Sara Caracristi through my friends at Art Interiors, Elizabeth Lennie was the only figurative artist who drew me into a story that felt safe enough for me to hang in my own home. I know that probably makes me weird, but I’ve confessed it to you now, so I feel better about it.

In contrast to the figurative portraits that create in me a sense of discomfort, Sara Caracristi’s vantage point on her figurative work is something different altogether. Yes, there is a distinct sense of story and relationship in the characters she paints; and yet, there is an even greater sense that I am the observer. I am free to hover above the story in a way that leaves me feeling safe, amused and still very engaged. I feel more like I am people-watching at the airport, musing on the wanderings of humanity as we buzz about everyday life.

There is a level of detail in Caracristi’s paintings that is deeply personal, and yet her mastery of the aerial vantage point also allows the figures to blur into more abstract blocks of colour to my eye.

For me, this creates a kind of abstraction that is typically quite unexpected in this style of figurative work. And I love it.

I also love the constant sense of motion, that life is always moving, always changing. I feel drawn into that story and made just a little bit more alive from it when I engage with Caracristi’s paintings.

How do you feel about figurative work? Does it draw you into a story; make you feel a part of history? I hope Sara Caracristi’s paintings will inspire you to become a more active observer of detail, perspective and relational interactions, even if it is from a polite distance.

xo
s.

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|July 8th, 2013|0 Comments

The Curated Collection | Elizabeth Lennie

Happy Canada Day! In celebration of the birthday of our home and native land, I had to share one of my favourite Canadian painters with you today. I adore Elizabeth Lennie‘s work for many reasons, but I think it is her subject matter that has most captured my Canadian heart. She understands and expresses our nation at play, capturing the essence of our outdoor pastimes in a way that is beautifully nostalgic. I am easily transported and transposed into her work, back to a younger, more innocent time. Back to a time when “time” seemed to stretch on infinitely. Back to a time when “summer” meant two months off to just play.

My guess is that this Canada Day long weekend, many of you will be spending your days by {or even better, in} the water, just as Lennie imagines you.

I know of few artists who have perfected the art of painting water with such a casual, painterly stroke. As her work has evolved, there appears to me to be an even greater air of expression and “oneness” between Lennie and the water. She has clearly spent many years researching her paintings by plumbing the water’s depths, feeling the pull and drag of it between her fingers as she draws herself through the blue, dappled-light of liquid dreams. From surface to underworld, Lennie captures the azure essence of what draws us all in and allows us to lose countless hours while finding our sense of play again.

Each time I view Lennie’s latest collections I am inspired to simply get outside. I also pine for a pool in the backyard and a weekend cottage retreat. A pool was perhaps the one and only luxury my family had growing up, and it turned me into the water baby I still am today.

Elizabeth Lennie‘s work is available through Art Interiors in Toronto.

How are you spending your Canada Day weekend? I hope it involves some play time, much laughter, and the opportunity to connect with the ones you love.

xo
s.

By Sarah Walker The Curated House|July 1st, 2013|1 Comment