My art rises from my pain and dreams: surreal figures breaking loss, each brushstrokes a portal into a vivid, unflinching world.
You decide who will appear in Artforum Magazine, take home $25,000, and display their work at The Art of Elysium's Salon!
I am a visceral figurative painter. My work is a raw, spontaneous exploration of the human form, oscillating between the heavy, layered textures of oil and the fast-paced urgency of acrylics. I often break up traditional techniques with the chaotic, industrial energy of spray paint. Inspired by the distortions of Francis Bacon and the surrealism of Dalí, I create "weird" figures that inhabit the space between high-impact grit and dreamlike fluidness.
Where do you find inspiration?My inspiration lives in the shadows of Goya and the unflinching movement of Van Gogh. It is fueled by the adrenaline of the goalie crease and the sensory intensity of a professional kitchen. I find creative sparks in the existential weight of writers like Camus and Dostoevsky, translating those heavy themes into spontaneous brushstrokes. My grandmother’s creative legacy remains my foundation, driving me to find a weird, vivid truth within the everyday absurdity of life.
What would you do with $25,000?I would fully establish the "No lan" studio, investing in archival oils, large-scale canvases, and a professional ventilation setup for experimental spray paint work. I’d travel to Madrid and London to study Goya and Bacon’s masterpieces firsthand, absorbing their technical mastery to evolve my own figurative style. This funding would also allow me to launch a multimedia series that bridges the visceral connection between the culinary arts and surrealist painting.
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