Anna's Contemporary Art Blog

 Michaela Stark Redefines the Beauty of the Human Body in Second Skin Original photo from  Self Portraits - Michaela Stark . Self Portrait, September 2023     An incredibly inspirational and controversial artist I have discovered recently is Michaela Stark. A  couturier based in London, Stark designs lingerie pieces with the goal of pushing the limits of her body's plasticity and emphasizing areas that many were taught to hide to feel beautiful. Not only does she make these pieces to perform in or exhibit in galleries and photos, but she also offers made-to-order garments on her website. I came across her work through social media, where exhibits of her wearing her extravagant lingerie were met with mixed reactions by users. One of her most personal series, titled Second Skin,  is some of the first pictures I saw of her work, and I was in awe of the detail of each piece as well as the way she contorts her body into the most unconventional yet alluring shape...

Paul Pfeiffer's Manipulated Media Original Photo from  Paul Pfeiffer: Always In Search of Visual Charge » FLUX (fluxhawaii.com)     Thanks to many social media accounts and blogs that show off contemporary art, I have found the incredible work of Paul Pfeiffer. Born in Hawaii and growing up in the Philippines, Pfeiffer eventually moved to the United States and pursued art in New York in the 90s. His art spans multiple different medias, including video, photography, and sculpture. Most of his work involves the manipulation of footage from TV shows, videos, and broadcasted events of all kinds, which is what drew me into his work initially. His exhibit  Prologue to the Story of the Birth of Freedom was some of the first of his pieces I saw online, and I knew I had to explore more of his art.      This exhibit includes works of manipulated footage and sculpture primarily. The focus of the exhibit is about how much of life is turned into a spectacle and how...

 Mario Moore's Revolutionary Times Exhibit Mario Moore, 2023, Original photo from  PRESS — MARIO MOORE (mariomoorestudio.com)     While on a trip to Grand Rapids, I visited the Grand Rapids Art Museum and saw an amazing exhibit by the Michigan artist Mario Moore, titled  Revolutionary Times. The exhibition displayed three series of works by Moore, including large-scale portraits, drawings, and a short film. Before going on my trip, I was researching what was on display at the GRAM when I saw his portraits. I was in awe of their realism and vibrant color, which made me look into his art some more. After reading about what his exhibition was about, I knew I had to go see them in person on my trip. The experience ended up being very inspiring to me both creatively and personally.  Honor: Harriet Tubman (Danielle) 2021, Oil on Panel, 12 x 9 inches  Honor: Enoch Long (Demond) 2021, Oil on Panel, 12 x 9 inches     Even though the large-scale painti...

  Nina Elder's Lists : A Collaborative Collection of Fleeting Thoughts Original photo from  ABOUT | Nina Elder  2024       Nina Elder is a contemporary artist that injects curiosity and inclusion into her work in various ways. One of my favorite series of hers, Lists , portrays these interests in a fascinating way. She and many other local organizations, small towns, and individuals participate in the creation of lists of words inscribed in paper covered in a multitude of materials. At first glance, the words etched out seem random next to each other, but the question asked to provoke the words reveals a beautiful meaning of humanity.     In an interview I watched of her at the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art, Elder discussed what inspires her work in Lists . She described how she starts with curiosity in her work, deriving her art from whatever thought or question has been bouncing around her mind. The titles of her lists alone reveal the depth ...