Did she love him and take her hair down at night, 2020 – Anastasia Pelias

I am a multidisciplinary artist – my bodies of work include oil paintings on canvas, works on paper, sculpture, video and multi-dimensional site-specific and site-responsive installations. The human-size scale of my interactions with diverse media allows the viewer to immerse themselves in the work as opposed to simply being an observer. I consider all of my work to be painting, even though it may not look like painting.

In my studio practice, I unapologetically embrace subjects of love, sex, death, destiny, and the human experience – in particular the female experience. The dual cultural identity of both my native New Orleans and my ancestral roots in Skopelos Greece profoundly inform my work. I am engaged with Greek rituals and ideas about fate and destiny as well as the rich pageantry of New Orleans culture. Deep ancestral connections that are ever-present, that resonate even if they are not always understood, find their way into my work.

While I am working, I enter a space where I avoid conscious thought. I embrace a process that is both intuitive and intentional. I am drawn to content and meaning, abstraction and gesture, and the materiality of paint. Color and its emotional power is a critical component in all of my work. I believe in the power of painting and its ability to evoke a visceral response from the viewer, and to change how people see the world. I want to create work that is full of emotion and visual pleasure.

Lot #22357