I’m Paige Wassel. WAS the Newsletter is your weekly dose of design inspiration, where art is a lie that makes us realize the truth.

GET TO KNOW MY FAVORITE ARTISTS

One of the most common questions people ask me about interior design is, “How do I find good art for my home?” And for good reason—art that fits your space, style, and budget can be surprisingly difficult to find. 

To help make that process easier, today I’m putting you onto three of my favorite artists. All have originals and/or prints for sale, so if you’re on the hunt for the perfect piece—look no further!

Basma Alromaih

What’s inspiring you right now? What keeps you inspired to make art?

I’m very inspired by scene stills from different films from my favorite directors, The Devil, Probably by Robert Bresson is one example. Faces of strangers, emotions, vintage photographs, photos that I’ve taken on my iPhone or film camera capturing scenes from life, tender moments or passing moments that we usually take for granted. And there’s a quote from Robert Rauschenberg that’s been an inspiration to me: “Art as a mirror of capturing the outside world.”

I’m inspired to make art out of pure need, as cheesy as it sounds, I do it to process my emotions and as an outlet in general. I struggle sometimes with my full-time job to be disciplined with making art, but over the past year I started making a daily ‘dos and don’ts’ list with a little drawing in a square, which became part of my morning routine to take time to do a quick sketch and come up with random words for the day. I kept posting it to my IG stories, and to my surprise, my friends really connected to it, which motivated me to keep doing it, I might make it into a zine someday once I have a few pocketbooks done! Currently I’m trying to go out of my comfort zone of painting portraits by letting myself create a chaotic mess of expressions (writing, scribbles, figures, abstract shapes).

What artists have been formative to your practice?

Andrey Avinoff, Frida Kahlo, Francis Bacon, Reza Shafahi, Joseph Cornell, and Robert Rauschenberg.

What kind of art do you have in your home? Does your approach to art inform your interior design style, or do you think of them as separate?

Random art pieces that I’ve collected over time, mostly are ink or pencil sketches, art prints, paintings, and collages from some of my favorite contemporary artists (Funkadelics, Justin Tyler Close, comfortablefields), and  photographs that my talented friends took (@lizarddofozz and elisamichelet.com)

My approach to art and design are very connected and similar. When I approach designing a space I think of colors and textures and a mood/ambiance that I want to set, and it’s the same with paintings. I tend to gravitate to the same colors, shapes, textures, and moods with both my interior design style and my artwork.

I read that part of your practice entails creating characters through which you explore different themes and ideas. How do you develop a character, and what stories do you want them to tell? More generally, how does fiction propel your art? 

It always starts with people’s faces that I encounter, maybe they’re a distant memory, or a stranger, or someone I’m close to, but mostly it starts with an emotion or an experience. (Again, why am I so cheesy?) I try to make sense of my own emotions, thoughts, and experiences when I’m creating a character.

Initially, I used fictional characters with the hope to push boundaries and break taboos around women’s sexuality, shame, gender expectations, societal constructs, and mental illness. I still do that, but I guess without consciously thinking about it. Right now, the characters that I develop tend to capture human emotions and experiences, or even different versions of ourselves and others, and interactions between people and how they influence one another, or even solitude. Just the human experience in general and making sense of it.

In addition to your paintings and illustrations, you’re an experienced photographer. What do you notice as a photographer versus as a visual artist? What compels you to take a picture instead of picking up a paintbrush?

I think they stem from the same urge of capturing a feeling, but with photographs it’s obviously different than my own interpretation of things that taints certain memories of strangers or scenes that I encounter in my life. Fleeting moments compel me to take pictures, I want to preserve a memory of a place or person. I also love taking pictures of my friends, capturing them in how I see them, them just being themselves, it’s a special thing to take portraits, and I’d love to do it more often with strangers, maybe in their homes just existing freely and comfortably. Kinda like images from Apartamento magazine, but more intimate and personal.

You made the piece that’s going above my fireplace–what was it like making a custom piece of art for me? I hear there are a few others available for purchase. Where can we find them? Are you open to working on custom pieces for other clients?

In the beginning, nerve-racking. I haven’t painted big-scale since Covid, and I was worried that the painting will suck, and you will have to suck it up and hang it haha, ‘cause you’re a good friend like that. But when I started painting it was like riding a bike, and it felt so incredible to paint something for you and know that it will end up in your home and be with you forever. And your reaction to it was priceless and you motivated me to keep going.

Right now, there are 4 or 5 originals for sale, and I will also make prints of those pieces. You can find them on my website and my art account. I am very open to working on custom pieces for other clients, would be a dream!

Where can we learn more about you and/or purchase your art? 

My art account @basmaromaih and my website www.basmaromaih.com.

Avery Cordray

What’s inspiring you right now? What keeps you inspired to make art?

Anxiety—lol.  Not to be a downer! To be honest I often find myself stuck in indecision and stressing over choices in every day life, which can really weigh me down. My lack of confidence doesn’t help either. It is a bit overwhelming sometimes. However, when I pick up my paintbrush, I break through that inertia. In those moments, as the paint flows, I find a sense of freedom and ease that isn’t always there with me in everyday life.

The act/joy of painting allows me to escape those mental blocks and experience a sense of flow and clarity. This liberation and the ease I experience while creating are what keeps me motivated and inspired to continue making art. Inspiration comes from finding freedom and ease in the process of painting. When I pick up my paintbrush, I break free from the indecision and worries that weigh me down inside my head.

What kind of art do you have in your home? Does your approach to art inform your interior design style, or do you think of them as separate?

I have tons of vintage art. We have a lot of folk art, abstract 1950’s, surrealist art, unsigned hobby art, and a lot a lot of sculpture. Some of mine too, hehe.

The vibe of our place is very eclectic and bright. There is a sense of careful curation of all the objects while being really whimsical and definitely lived in. Our space definitely is as crazy as my art, and might I add we f@#$ing love color. When I say we, I mean my husband Ray and me, his love for color and design comes from his experience working with vintage since he was a lil kid, he also has a store in Hollywood with his brother, Jose. Vintage Concept Design, go check it out!

Your instagram bio says that you’re ”loyal to the oil.” Oil paints are widely used, of course, but from what I understand, notoriously challenging to work with. What do you like about painting with oils? Is there something about oil painting that’s integral to your work, that helps you get your ideas across better than, say, watercolors or acrylics?

There are so many reasons I’m drawn to these expensive, challenging oil paints. Not only is it my champagne taste and beer budget that follows me around, but the rich colors and vibrancy. In my opinion they are unmatched by acrylics. (They smell kinda cute too.) The depth and luminosity I can achieve with oils are truly addictive. Plus, their slow drying time actually enhances my creative process, allowing me to move between multiple paintings without feeling rushed. I love being able to hop around and continually adjust my work. It’s something I’ve done since I was a kid—working on up to eight paintings at once. It seems to reflect who I am and how I approach art…and life. I love the chaos, baby.

Your paintings are mesmerizing and dreamlike–I feel like I could fall into them! As someone who works with abstraction and fields of color, you don’t necessarily rely on specific forms or realism to shape your paintings. So where do your paintings begin, how do you start?

Making me blush. Thank you. I love that you think they are dreamlike and mesmerizing. That’s my intention, for you be able to just lose yourself in these canvases. I really like to blur the line between accident and intention in my work. I go for an intuitive, raw energy with expressive marks, graphic lines, organic and bold colors.

My approach to painting varies with each piece. It’s less about my emotions and more about my creative impulses at the moment. I might start by having fun with the background, experimenting with dynamic gradients and abstract shapes. Other times, I begin with a sketch of eerie forms and then work on the background later. Sometimes, I simply follow the flow of the colors as they guide me. Typically, I lay out the colors on my palette and let my instincts take over. My process is fluid and has evolved significantly since I began painting.

Where can we learn more about you and/or purchase your art? 

My website is www.averycordray.com. I'm very open to commissions!

Christina Attié Ballantyne

What’s inspiring you right now? What keeps you inspired to make art?

I’m inspired to make work from things that resonate with me on an emotional level. I’m very interested in spirituality and psychology which I can see in most everything—through observing people I know, watching films, listening to music.

Creating feels very instinctual to me, as if it’s a natural part of myself. As a result, my working process is quite introspective. If I’m unable to work for an extended time period, I feel like I’m ignoring a natural urge. Painting provides a sort of an internal excavation of what feelings and emotions I’ve been soaking in—maybe that’s based on interactions, old memories, or reading the news. Listening to and responding to these urges keeps me in the studio.

Creating has become a process that’s in unison with what feels right internally connecting it to an external language.

What artists have been formative to your practice?

There are so many, but if I had to pick three: Louise Bourgeois, Chris Ofili, and Ferdinand Holder.  I love the rawness of Louise Bourgeois’s work. It’s as if we’re looking directly at her. She speaks about her work in a very straight forward unapologetic way which I admire. Chris Ofili, especially his early work, expanded how I view painting. He adds elephant dung, collaged photos, glitter and creates figures in this psychedelic spiritual way. Artists like him, inventing a new language, feel like a permission slip to do things I may feel trepidation/hesitation towards. I feel a strong sense of freedom when I see his work.

I have always loved Ferdinand Hodler, a Swiss painter from the mid 1800s. I’m drawn to his life story and how he paints the sorrow of death and then these beautiful hopeful and vast landscapes.

What kind of art do you have in your home? Does your approach to art inform your interior design style, or do you think of them as separate?

I have mostly paintings I’ve traded with friends—larger and smaller works and a crazy ceramic head I bought from an artist.

I also have my own and my husband—Ish Lipman's paintings, as well as gifts from artist friends. I rotate what paintings I have up in each room and give new life to it. If I like something, I'll find a place for it. In terms of art and my interior design style, I wouldn’t wait to match art to a space but rather get it and find where it fits. 

I see how much good design can transform a space and create a mood. From painting, you learn a lot about how small changes have an impact, how nuanced and complex color is, but it’s still a challenge for me to implement that with my own living space. 

You’re a painter and a sculptor, but I find it really interesting how you often bring a sculptural element to your paintings, making them highly textural and multi-dimensional. For you, what’s the relationship between sculpture and painting? What’s your experience like working across mediums?

I really enjoy the challenge of seeing if and how I can say something through new materials and extending my own boundaries of my painting. Working across mediums helps me to continue experimenting and keep the studio spontaneous. When I’m trying to use new material, I don’t know what the outcome will be, which helps me be less judgmental and more immersed in my work.

It’s hard to define my relationship between sculpture and painting. I’m always trying to combine them and it's a gamble whether it works. It’s sort of an intuitive urge of trying to combine these different things I like doing in one piece. I often have the urge to put more into the painting, to experiment with the materiality, by placing objects on top of paintings, or putting small objects into the paint. Last year I began sewing canvases and stuffing them so that they are slightly sculptural and three dimensional. I want to keep adding to this and will see where it goes. 

Drawing and painting  was more accessible than other materials when I was starting out. I didn’t study art as my undergraduate degree, so I took a collage class at school of visual arts before applying to graduate school. I had a great teacher who really opened my mind to what art can be. She would dump a massive pile of things that belonged to her—things she found and materials we brought in and would play ambient music and we’d kind of just put them together—they turned into these assemblages and we’d just chat about them. It was a new way of working and interacting with materials.

From there, I began to appreciate more artists working in sculpture and assemblage and wanted to expand my painting practice. I’ve taught undergraduate multidisciplinary courses and always love when my students are making work in other mediums besides painting. They aren’t afraid to try things and aren’t overly concerned about whether they’ll work. I was really inspired by that.

I love all the strange figures and beings in your paintings. They remind me a lot of the fantastical creatures found in the margins of medieval manuscripts, or something you might find in a Bosch painting. Where do these beings come from, and what do they represent to you?

I’ve always been drawn to faces and figures. If I don’t have an image in mind, which I often don’t, I just begin to paint marks and put down colors. After a while, they start to resemble faces and creatures. I’m very interested in people and the body—how we experience ourselves emotionally and spiritually in a physical way. I’m interested in depicting people as if their emotions or maybe spirits could be seen rather than a realistic depiction of their face and bodies.

People’s relationship with spirituality interests me so I love that you’re seeing connections between medieval manuscripts and Bosch. I actually only recently took a deeper look at Bosch’s works. I love the complexity of his paintings and how long you can look at them. So many are depicting hell. It was also thought that Bosch saw his own town burn down, which influenced these works. I made a painting a few years ago based on a story called The Apocalypse of Anastasia, a medieval story about a nun Anastasia who explores the "otherworld" with the Archangel in her time of being dead for three days, and after her resurrection, she explains the marvelous and terrible things she had encountered.

Where can we learn more about you and your art?

You can see a majority of my art on my Instagram and most (but not all) on my website:

@xtinaballantyne2.0

www.christinaballantyne.com

ballantynechristina@gmail.com

People usually message or email me to purchase and depending on the work, I connect people to galleries I work with. I’m always happy to chat if people want to learn more or have questions.

KATE’S PAINT COLOR OF THE WEEK

Sherwin Williams : Inland

Finish: Eggshell or satin

Room Light Level: Mid to Low

xx,
P