On View: April 19-24, 2024
Julia Matthiesen was born in New York, and is receiving a BA of Studio Art with a minor in Data Science. She is the inaugural recipient of the Malú Alvarez Visual Arts Scholarship. In 2022, she studied abroad in Florence, Italy and was highly influenced by both the Classical Italian Renaissance Art she saw there and the graffiti and street art she saw abroad in Europe and at home in New York City. At Davidson College, she is involved in Libertas Arts and Literary Student Magazine as a Design Editor and volunteers at Planned Parenthoods in the Charlotte area with the PPGA club. Her work has been in exhibitions in New York and North Carolina, including at Concordia College of New York, and most recently at the Annual Student Art Exhibition at Davidson College. She has worked in NYC as a Gallery Assistant, Gallery Manager, and is currently Assistant Curator in a major exhibition project with 511 Gallery in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan.
Artist Statement:
In my art I explore the intricate tapestry of contemporary political and social landscapes through a satirical lens. The paintings are large scale mixed media works of various paints and oil pastels. Color and layers are two of the most important aspects of my work. When painting my first few layers, I work more instinctively than anything else: putting down ideas on canvas and editing as I go. I like to use a mix of recognizable images, logos, and people, as well as text in varying levels of legibility. Through creating art about current, and often serious, political topics in a humorous way, I demystify the sometimes intricate modern political realm. Additionally, I allow the messages in my paintings to remain subjective, and can present opposing beliefs. I am drawn to fun and bright colors, as well as hard contrasts created by using pure white and pure black paint– a big no-no in the traditional realist painting practice. A major influence of mine is not only graffiti and street art, but also the works of Jean-Michel Basquiat and Leon Golub.
