Gabriella sees her artwork as in a constant state of becoming. As such, she encourages her audience to actively participate in the viewing of her work. The artist does not finish a work of art; rather, the viewer becomes an equal participant when they construct meaning.

At present thematically Gabriella is focused on exploring concepts of the feminine identity. As a woman she has very strong feminine views. Her work is dominated by the concepts of power: weakness, strength, domination, submission and subjugation. The ideas she tries to convey are either personal to her identity as a woman or personal to her experience and observation of other women and how others relate to them.  She strives to emphasize woman’s importance as a member of society and as a member of the universe. This is achieved by expressing her as powerful and weak; exalted and debased; at her most effeminate as well as her most masculine.

Gabriella’s work is about humanity and our world, both realized and fanaticized. Through visual manifestations of power, her art celebrates the internal power that the female holds within herself. Her work is a testament to woman, celebrating who she was, who she is and what she may become.

Gabriella is currently working on a diverse new body of work within the framework of the theme of “Woman” with the intension of having her first solo exhibit in June 2012 in Trinidad.

For more information on Gabriella and her work please visit her website www.gabrielladabreauart.com

ARTICLE FEATURED IN XEX MAGAZINE: SPECIAL EDITION ISSUE

 ARTICLE FEATURED IN XEX MAGAZINE: SPECIAL EDITION ISSUE

David Merrique is an Illustrator based in New York. His illustrations are drawings colored digitally. He incorporates strong use of hand-drawn line, color and flat shapes to describe form, light and shadow. These illustrations are in a world that does not exist. He creates them as he draws.

Unlike his illustrations, David’s drawings are very much based in reality. This is where his traditional art education shows. His portraits are mimetic, as he puts lots of time and care in his shading. It’s as if the figures appear to emerge from the white void that is the surface of the paper.

http://davidmerrique.com/    

 CLICK TO ENLARGE

DeMello brings an integrative perspective with cross-cultural origins of Indian decent, born in Manchester, England, and raised in Vancouver, Canada. Inspired from fashion & design to the metaphysical & spirituality to music & dance to almost anything and everything, she likes to look at things in different ways to stretch understanding and perspective to expand beyond the seeming appearances.  She loves nature and believes in a balance of a modern society coexisting peacefully with the planet.  Michelle has a cosmic approach to painting with every stroke, line or drop created in a moment of synchronicity and knowing.  With the intention to humanize a technologically oriented world, she creates paintings that you want to touch, rich in textures and feelings from jagged and smooth to raw and refined. It gives Michelle great pleasure to create, capture and connect with humanity through her art.
“I incorporate my fascination of psychology, spirituality, science, pop culture, and the many facets of what creates humanity into my art. I am intrigued by fashion and design, and its ability as a medium to communicate and impact the masses and niche audiences. I am inspired by what moves people, what stirs people’s emotions, touches people’s souls and how I can create this connection to bring love, understanding, and evolution to humanity on a deep level.  I like to twist perceptions and play with people’s minds. I like to integrate all aspects of humanity from the vulgar to the poetic, from the wisdom of the ancients to the efficiency of the modern man, from the technological to the tribal, I desire to bring balance, beauty and grace to the juxtaposing extremes of humanity”…

XEXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW w/ MICHELLE DeMeLLO

By: Fashion Editor Inoisell Miranda

1-When did you become an artist? I feel one is born into the world an artist with an intuition and sensitivity that is important to be nurtured and expressed. I ‘became’ an artist in the sense of a profession in 2004 when I started selling canvases.

2-Where do you go when you are without a muse? I am so grateful to say that I am connected to an infinite source of creativity. I never go without a muse. I go within; I don’t need to go outside of myself. I don’t even need to leave the house. Although I must say nature is always a muse, which keeps me connected.

3-What lead you into poetry & does it always come with a painting? People would ask me about the painting and I would tell a story or go into the philosophy and the process behind it. I found myself repeating it over and over again and people were inspired by my words, asking that I write it down. And so I did. And it turned into poetry.

The first poetry I wrote was a response to my earlier paintings and was an interesting process to go deeper into the painting after it was created, also to reflect upon where I was in that moment in time as an observer. Over the last years I’ve been focusing on the poetry, which has painting yet to accompany it. It will be interesting to explore this process in reverse. I also have musicians who are creating music to my words and I will be turning the poems into performance pieces. It will be interesting to see how this concept develops, as I also envision creating the stage and set design for these performed vignettes.

4-What is fashion? Fashion is an expression of the self and an art form in itself. There is a muse, like art, behind what creates fashion, whether they are internal or external forces. Fashion is a beautiful way to extend your self as a work of art.

5-What is Art? Art is spirit. Art is sacred. Art is a vehicle for mankind to express and communicate and connect with each other. Art is a vessel for the divine to bring healing to the planet.

6-Do you consider your work Bizarre and/or how do you relate to the concept? If I am in a room full of ‘bizarre’ people then we are no longer bizarre amongst each other. Some of my latest works are bizarre to some and not to others. Some people may think the way I am bizarre, which is my normalcy. I guess it comes down to social conditioning and how open you are as an individual.

7-What is your biggest influence or inspiration? My inspiration is discovering how deep I can go inside of myself and tapping into the unknown, the invisible, the energies of the universe, the stars, the heavens, and see where it takes me…

8-Favorite Artist? In this moment Leonardo DaVinci is an inspiration or an archetype I admire for his mastery of balance and integration of the left brain and right brain.

9-What will you tell our viewers about going after their dreams? Always follow what you love and allow your passion to fuel you. And for those who feel disconnected from it, cultivate it and go inside yourself. The external world is a reflection of our internal. So keep going deeper until your external world matches your internal desires.

10-Where can we find your work? You can go to my website www.michelledemello.com I must say that it’s outdated at the moment as I’ve been in my cave creating, and so I’m hoping to have my newer pieces online soon, as well as an exhibition in New York City. I have a book ready to be published with my latest poetry and concepts – it tells the story of humanity’s love affair. Keep an eye out…

INTERVIEW & STORY BY ASSOCIATE EDITOR: KEISHA BLENMAN

“The idea of the human mind and how we work on a basic level fascinates me. Human instincts and our natural desires and emotions have filled my head with questions for a long period of my life”

- At what age did you start painting?

I have been doing art for as long as I can remember but serious oil painting did not become my life until my last year of college.

- What school did you attend for Art?

I attended Parsons School of Design for illustration. I wasn’t the best art student though; actually I failed for rarely attending class for painting one semester. I was coming out of a long-term relationship and was very depressed for my senior year there and I didn’t leave my studio much at all that year. During my depression I met a well known French photographer, Francois Rousseau (www.francoisrousseau.com) and began working with him on a museum exhibit in Paris which turned into a large book called “Atelier”. Francois helped give me some purpose at a very dark time in my life and that was probably the turning point for me. I was also pushed to begin shooting photos as well and since then have pursued photography.

- Has painting presented better opportunities for you than photography has?

Paintings are the roots of photographs so I think both are important for me as an artist; my paintings led me into photography. I think being a painter has definitely helped give me some integrity as a photographer. I use photos for my reference in my paintings as well so I like to shoot my subjects if it is possible. I think both painting and photography go hand in hand but photography now a day is a more commercial platform than painting. I am lucky to have a lot of opportunities and support in both art forms right now.

- Who would you cite as your overall biggest influences and/or inspirations?

I have had terrible dreams/nightmares all my life. They have inspired a lot of the closely cropped portraits early on which led me to become fascinated by the human mind, human nature and how we think and act on a psychological level. I think human feelings are a huge source of power for me, though it’s a very fine line between inspiration and depression. I have a dark side that can easily take control of me while I work; I’m still learning to channel it into my art and not my personal life.

I love classic art; Rembrandt is probably still the painter I look at most to be inspired by.

Certain people in my life also have had a huge impact on me. A close friend, Kelley Sane (Rendition) who is a screenwriter, constantly influences my way of thinking and approaching my work.  Someone else that is important to me right now is the interior designer James Andrew (www.whatisjameswearing.com) and of course Francois Rousseau is still a huge inspiration for me. But probably the one thing that I have become completely in love with over the years is horses. I grew up with them and still have one back home. I find their sensitivity to nature about them so amazing and beautiful. I ride bareback (without a saddle) as much as I can and to feel every movement and emotion within the horse to me not only inspire me but brings a peace to my soul. To be in sync with nature even for a moment is truly inspiring.

- What is your inspiration behind each piece?

I have a mixture of personal work and commissions right now that are all very different. The commissions of course are more about finding something within the subject to become interested in; I find beauty in imperfections and honesty. I don’t try to create beautiful people in my portraits. I’m more interested in painting feelings, a state of mind. Painting has to be an organic process, natural, I can never force it.

- Have you painted anyone famous?

Yes, my close friend Kelley Sane was one of my first commissions. I am just finishing some political figures right now but they won’t be seen until my next show in 2010. I was also commissioned to paint a huge portrait of Madonna for a home in Manhattan. I can’t say I’m doing a lot of famous people right now, more like painting self-portraits and now horses.

- What was your most difficult painting?

One of my first self-portraits I did during my depression after my separation from my ex. I painted this huge portrait of my face, very closely cropped which was inspired from a nightmare. I could not stop painting, I remember crying and crying while I painted. During the process I was in a lot of pain emotionally but it is still my favorite painting to this day I have ever done.

What makes your paintings more out of the ordinary than any other painters’?

That is probably not a question that I can honestly answer. I think everything I have said about myself and my paintings is what makes them my own. I don’t really compare myself to other artists too much. I think people can learn from everyone, even in a small way but every artist whether considered good or great has their own way of thinking and working which makes it their art. Let’s leave it at that…

- Where do you see yourself in a few years?

Still painting and shooting of course. I am still young and patience is something I have to deal with, I want to grow as an artist, to keep on evolving – I don’t like to be static. I feel like this question is where I say I want to have huge shows and galleries represent me and sell my paintings etc… which of course I am working towards but I want to create work that I feel satisfied about, that reach people on an emotional level and holds some form of timeless power in them.

As for photography I wish to keep growing in that as well and shoot for fashion magazines here and in Europe. I have lots of visions which I have to work towards realizing.

- Where would our viewers go to view your work?

My websites are:

www.nicholasturnerart.com (paintings)

www.nicholasturnerphotos.com (photos)

Or of course you may come to my next show in Berlin 2010.

You are welcome to contact me through my site and set up an appointment to come by my studio in Manhattan.

TO SEE MORE OF HIS WORK CLICK !ISSUE! – ISSUE 2

In another mixed media piece he stands lifeless with wires wrapped around his body, yet no visual understanding of where the strands of wires begin or where they end. The artist explores other individuals and scenes, such as a work entitled Lolita, inspired by the 1952 film by Stanley Kurbrick and adapted from the novel by Nabokov.
 
Self identity through media reference can develop into individual references. Bryan’s work utilizes references from film, television, painting and print media, sometimes projecting a film noir view. Iconic individuals such as Marilyn Monroe have been exposed in media. The actress is the focus in several paintings, whereby the artist dons a Marilyn wig and places his image side by side with Monroe.

 
In Bryan’s words: “These paintings are a reference to conscious and unconscious thought stemming from media images or technology which pervade or influence out cognition”.

> BRYAN’S NEW EXHIBIT IS CURRENTLY BEING SHOWN @ THE WESTWOOD GALLERY. NOVEMBER 20th 2009 – JANUARY 9th 2010.

INTERVIEW

1-When & where did you start painting?
I started painting when I was 12 years old, in Colorado.
 
2-What is bizarre to you and how do you relate it to your work?
I don’t really find anything bizarre, because nothing its really that’s strange it is just a matter of perception.
 
3-What is the source of your inspiration?
People & how we all as a whole, a society, react to our influences.
 
4-If you could compare your work to any genre of music, what would it be and why?
I would compare it to classical, instrumental music, because there are no words to describe it. It could be interpreted however you wish, therefore, is more true to yourself and your perception of the truth. The feeling of something should be more important than the words used to describe it.
 
5-Art is…
Anything that you find important enough to put thought into.