Dear Angela Chalmers
I am currently studying Fine Art in my final year. My theme is based on woman in contemporary society and how they seek to change their identities through cosmetic surgery, and how they become un-natural and almost a super race or unique beings. My portrayals of these women have the same underlying ideas as the women do in your own paintings. For example, the juxtaposition between the beautiful and the grotesque convey unsettling feelings for the viewer. In "Ophelia", 2004 there is a lifeless, horrific depiction of a female figure, which is one of my favourites. If you could take some time and answer just a couple of questions it would be greatly appreciated and would give me an insight into a living artists world, working with some ideas that I share.
I am currently studying Fine Art in my final year. My theme is based on woman in contemporary society and how they seek to change their identities through cosmetic surgery, and how they become un-natural and almost a super race or unique beings. My portrayals of these women have the same underlying ideas as the women do in your own paintings. For example, the juxtaposition between the beautiful and the grotesque convey unsettling feelings for the viewer. In "Ophelia", 2004 there is a lifeless, horrific depiction of a female figure, which is one of my favourites. If you could take some time and answer just a couple of questions it would be greatly appreciated and would give me an insight into a living artists world, working with some ideas that I share.
'Ophelia', is one of my most treasured pieces, and was probably the key starting point for most of my ideas. Whilst doing my degree I read many feminist essays, which I think clarified my own thoughts relating to social issues and personal concerns. This led to some of my work becoming autobiographical alongside work that contains deeper social and cultural meanings. Your questions mainly refer towards my ideas exploring contemporary media culture; such as the way that modern society appears to be obsessed with physical appearance and smooth flawless skin.
Q: Why do you feel that a female form is most fitting for what you want to portray?
The female form is a universal motif and I use it as a strategy to question, challenge and subvert the art historic representation of the female nude. The use of self-portraiture typified by Jenny Saville, Cindy Sherman and Francesca Woodman, have been my biggest influences. They recognised the need to represent a feminine identity on their own terms.
Q: The use of earthy tones in your paintings creates a sense of decay together with the washes of the inks, do you feel the palette enhances all of your ideas of the grotesque and the beautiful and does it enhance those ideas, and why?
The earthy tones certainly help to evoke a sense of decay, although it wasn’t intentional. I am not concerned with colour like some artists and prefer to work in monotones. My method of pouring and dripping inks to create organic form and line probably enhance those ideas more.
Q: In "Hello boys", 2005 a female form is portrayed in a stereotypical seductive pose, do your paintings comment or refer to the male gaze or how woman are represented in society?
Both, but mostly highlights ideas about the male gaze. I wanted to assert the presence of femininity to expose and de-construct. Compared to the majority of my work it was a liberating piece at the time of making.
Q: Do you feel the scale would create more of an unsettling feeling if it was a lot larger, or do you choose to work on this scale for a particular reason?
I think scale is important and agree that larger pieces would have a more powerful effect. Some of my current pieces may end up in commercial galleries who prefer a smaller scale.
Q: What is your technique, do you work from a live model or photographs etc?
I sometimes use photographs of myself, or adapt found images. I intend to use models at some point, which will certainly help in my search for extreme expressive poses.
Q: The positions of the forms can sometimes look disfigured or deformed can you explain the reasons behind this?
I am inspired by Surrealism, especially artists such as Hans Bellmer. His distortion of the female form has influenced me mostly, although my concerns are more related to a surreal transformation of body and mind that perhaps accompanies emotional upheavals or self-induced oppressions, such as negative self-body image. During the process of making (as described above) the form itself may be lost or re-discovered, which often produces an abstracted figure.
Q: In your photography you comment on saying "By fragmenting elements of the female body, the viewer has to invest time into deciphering the form, subverting the traditional expectations of the female nude" is this also to unsettle the viewer as do you paintings, if so why is this a key aspect in your work?
Through my work I attempt to uncover alternative visions. The layered photographic images attempt to reflect a rebellious body. I was thinking about my own personal struggles and wanted to challenge the spectatorship with a more complex representation of the female form. I have to admit that I often question myself to why I do things in certain ways. There is always an element of soul-searching and reflection, which I’m sure you will find too.
Q: Why do you feel that a female form is most fitting for what you want to portray?
The female form is a universal motif and I use it as a strategy to question, challenge and subvert the art historic representation of the female nude. The use of self-portraiture typified by Jenny Saville, Cindy Sherman and Francesca Woodman, have been my biggest influences. They recognised the need to represent a feminine identity on their own terms.
Q: The use of earthy tones in your paintings creates a sense of decay together with the washes of the inks, do you feel the palette enhances all of your ideas of the grotesque and the beautiful and does it enhance those ideas, and why?
The earthy tones certainly help to evoke a sense of decay, although it wasn’t intentional. I am not concerned with colour like some artists and prefer to work in monotones. My method of pouring and dripping inks to create organic form and line probably enhance those ideas more.
Q: In "Hello boys", 2005 a female form is portrayed in a stereotypical seductive pose, do your paintings comment or refer to the male gaze or how woman are represented in society?
Both, but mostly highlights ideas about the male gaze. I wanted to assert the presence of femininity to expose and de-construct. Compared to the majority of my work it was a liberating piece at the time of making.
Q: Do you feel the scale would create more of an unsettling feeling if it was a lot larger, or do you choose to work on this scale for a particular reason?
I think scale is important and agree that larger pieces would have a more powerful effect. Some of my current pieces may end up in commercial galleries who prefer a smaller scale.
Q: What is your technique, do you work from a live model or photographs etc?
I sometimes use photographs of myself, or adapt found images. I intend to use models at some point, which will certainly help in my search for extreme expressive poses.
Q: The positions of the forms can sometimes look disfigured or deformed can you explain the reasons behind this?
I am inspired by Surrealism, especially artists such as Hans Bellmer. His distortion of the female form has influenced me mostly, although my concerns are more related to a surreal transformation of body and mind that perhaps accompanies emotional upheavals or self-induced oppressions, such as negative self-body image. During the process of making (as described above) the form itself may be lost or re-discovered, which often produces an abstracted figure.
Q: In your photography you comment on saying "By fragmenting elements of the female body, the viewer has to invest time into deciphering the form, subverting the traditional expectations of the female nude" is this also to unsettle the viewer as do you paintings, if so why is this a key aspect in your work?
Through my work I attempt to uncover alternative visions. The layered photographic images attempt to reflect a rebellious body. I was thinking about my own personal struggles and wanted to challenge the spectatorship with a more complex representation of the female form. I have to admit that I often question myself to why I do things in certain ways. There is always an element of soul-searching and reflection, which I’m sure you will find too.
