Welcome to my monthly column, InspiRed, where I will be talking about what has inspired me as an artist and where I will interview other artists, art students, and people involved in the art world. I am always touched and empowered by the stories of artists and powerful people in the art world and I wanted to use this opportunity to get to know what inspires others.
Why red? Red is often associated with passion, romance, anger; all around powerful emotions. It the color of blood, the color of pain, the color of my cheeks when I’m excited or frustrated, the color many political movements have incorporated into their artwork, and the color of power. I want to explore what makes artists and people in the art world red: What is most important to them? What makes them angry? What they are most passionate about?
For this first installment, I’d like to give credit to a few of the artists that have really impacted and inspired me. I’ve also selected their works that are particularly inspiRED (because of course).
Yayoi Kusama – Dots [Detail], 1999
Courtesy of Ed Jansen
I, like almost every other person in Seattle over the summer, was fascinated by Kusama’s Infinity Mirror’s exhibit and I had to learn more about her. Having known a small amount of her struggle with mental illness and psychosis, I wanted to hear more of her story so I read her autobiography and sang many praises of her in this article. Overall, she is an amazing artist who transcended the idea of repetition and installation work through her Infinity Rooms. What many people may not know is how politically involved she was during the Pop Art movement in New York in the 1960’s and that she had close relationships with notable artists like Georgia O’Keefe, Andy Warhol, and Joseph Cornell. She is certainly a force to be reckoned within the art world and red or white polka dots will always remind the world of her.
Humaira Abid – My Shame, 2017
Courtesy of The Stranger
My first exposure to Abid was at the Bellevue Arts Museum when I worked there as a Teen Docent. She spoke to us about her self-portrait piece featured in BAM’s 2014 Knock on Wood Biennial and told inspiring stories about the challenges she faced studying sculpture and miniature painting in Pakistan. Different means of oppressing women and children are extremely important to her and through her artwork she aims to take down patriarchal and racial oppression while elevating the experience of women. I reviewed her Searching for Home exhibit here and I absolutely love her so keep an eye out for an interview with her in next month’s column!
Van Gogh – The Night Café in Arles (1888)
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Although admiring Van Gogh has become somewhat of an ‘art-ho’ cliché, I think there is nothing wrong with being ‘basic’ and recognizing the talent of one of the most renowned artists in all of art history. Though he did not have a claim to fame during his lifetime, Van Gogh’s fascination with the color yellow and his trademark line work have shaken the art world forever. His story is a powerful one, filled with pain and suffering, one that many artists can relate to, and I don’t think that there is such a thing as over-appreciating his work. Loving Vincent, the painted biographical film that came out earlier this year, is a beautiful retrospect of his story.
Polly Nor – A Real Woman (2016)
Courtesy of PollyNor.com
Nor is a London-based artist that focuses on the themes of women, female sexuality, and emotional turmoil in her sculptures and digitial illustrations. Most-known for her illustrations of women and their demons, Nor has worked with large clients like Dr Martens and Gucci and is rising to fame before our very eyes. She enjoys confronting anxiety and the struggle for self-love in her work, both of which I and many can relate to. Her piece Stuck On You (2015) has been stuck on me and I would die to have one of her phone cases or tee shirts.
Richard Diebenkorn – Woman at Table in Strong Light (1959)
Courtesy of Wikiart.org
The first Diebenkorn I ever saw was Coffee (1959) at SFMOMA when I was visiting family the summer before my first year at Seattle University. I loved how he smoothed the edges of objects within his work and how subtly he shifted the tonality of light. After exploring more of his work, it’s refreshing to see how unafraid he was to leave paintings with texture and how he leaned towards abstraction in repeating landscapes. His colors are bright and so was his mind, as he was a leader in the abstract expressionism on the west coast.
Roy Lichtenstein – Sunrise (1965)
Courtesy of Telegraph.co.uk
Lichtenstein is a trademark pop artist who championed the comic-book style that everyone associates with the movement. His studies at Ohio State University were interrupted when he had to serve in the US Army in WWII, which impacted the subject matter of his work. This would be exemplified by Whaam! (1963). His most popular works are those which focus on women in a comic book style, like Drowning Girl (1963). I have had the privilege and luck to have seen both of these massive paintings in person and I, like a stereotypical art major, carry around a pencil bag with Reflections: Whaam! (1990) on it everywhere I go.
Henri Matisse – The Dessert: Harmony in Red (1906)
Courtesy of HenriMatisse.org
Matisse is another artist that approaches a Monet/Picasso/Van Gogh level in terms of art-world fame, making his work yet another cliché that appears on teenage girl’s Tumblr pages. However, beyond that name recognition, Matisse was actually a precursor and rival of Picasso’s. He was initially labeled as a fauvist as he used bright colors and left canvas exposed in his early works, like in Les toits de Collioure (1905). I am most fascinated by the cut-paper collages that he did late in his life after he was diagnosed with abdominal cancer, most of which have become majorly famous. We showcase a collection of these on the third floor of our very own Lemieux Library!
Joan Mitchell – City Landscape (1955)
Courtesy of TheArtStory.Org
Known as one of the most prominent female artists in the second generation of the American Expressionist movement, Joan Mitchell’s tremendously different work set her apart. She was inspired by Van Gogh, Monet, Cezanne, and De Kooning, while she focused mainly on landscapes as her subject manner. Contrary to most female artists, she made gigantic paintings that often took up multiple panels, making a big mark on the art world. Her work Untitled (1960) sold for $11.9 million in 2014, which is a record price for a female artist. She passed away in 1990 and a foundation was started in her name to help fund artists and art-education programs.
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Thanks for reading more about a handful of artists that have really inspired me, please check out some of their work, and read more about them! Keep an eye out for some interviews with artists and art students about what has InspiRed them the most!
ANNI CHRISTENSEN | Novice Numerologist | KXSU Art Reporter