Ruth Owens

Summertime Selfie (study)

2017

[ New Orleans, LA :: b.1959, Augsburg, Germany ] In 1959, Ruth Owens was born to a young German woman and a Black serviceman from Georgia. The nomadic military lifestyle of her chi...

[ New Orleans, LA :: b.1959, Augsburg, Germany ] In 1959, Ruth Owens was born to a young German woman and a Black serviceman from Georgia. The nomadic military lifestyle of her chi...

ARTIST STATEMENT RUTH OWENS graduated in 2018 with an MFA from the University of New Orleans after leaving her medical practice of 25 years. She is represented by Jonathan Ferrara G...

Framed Dimensions: 13h x 9.50w in RUTH OWENS graduated in 2018 with an MFA from the University of New Orleans after leaving her medical practice of 25 years. She is represented by t...

Framed Dimensions: 11.25h x 10w in RUTH OWENS graduated in 2018 with an MFA from the University of New Orleans after leaving her medical practice of 25 years. She is represented by the Jonathan Ferrara Gallery, and belongs to the artist collective, “The Front,” both in New Orleans. Owens’ work is concerned with contributing to and preserving the black archive, and she uses personal super-8 film references in her painting and video art. Artist residencies include the Joan Mitchell Center, the Addison Gallery of American Art, the Vermont Studio Center, and the Studios at MASS MoCA. She is slotted to attend the International Studio and Curatorial Program in NY in 2023. Her work is in the permanent collections of the Ackland Art Museum at UNC-Chapel Hill, the Addison Gallery of American Art, the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, the Dale Center for the Study of War and Society, and 21c Museum. The artist says of her work… In the sixties, my father was stationed at a military base in the deep South...

Framed dimensions: 14h in x 20.5w in RUTH OWENS graduated in 2018 with an MFA from the University of New Orleans after leaving her medical practice of 25 years. She is represented ...

original watercolour on paper 30x40cm hand signed 2022 Collective exhibitions: 2023 London biennale, Chelsea, Old Town Hall; 2023 YICCA International art contest, Venice, finalis...

original watercolour on paper hand signed 2022 Collective exhibitions: 2023 London biennale, Chelsea, Old Town Hall; 2023 YICCA International art contest, Venice, finalists exh...

original watercolour on paper 28x38cm hand signed 2023 Collective exhibitions: 2023 London biennale, Chelsea, Old Town Hall; 2023 YICCA International art contest, Venice, finali...

original watercolour on paper 28x38cm hand signed 2023 happiness happens The soul of Anastasia Kurakina has always been nourished by the sacred fire of art, so much so that even before starting to walk she was surrounded by art in all its forms. The artist recalls that at an early age she loved to spend hours and hours leafing through art books of the Italian Renaissance, contemplating the beauty and mastery of the cornerstones of art history. Kurakina since the age of three has always known that she would become a painter and, from that moment on, that great passion has always been well rooted and present in her state of mind. In her works we can find many memories of the great masters of contemporary art including Modigliani, Morandi, Bacon, Hockney, Van Gogh, Klimt, Schiele… , proof of her commendable craftsmanship and progressive stylistic evolution. Each work of Kurakina has a history and its development in which she is not only the creator but she participates in the creative process of which result she is quite unaware,and Anastasia loves to continually surprise herself with her own creations. Anastasia Kurakina's art has majestically brought together the very best of expressionism, art-nouveau and post-impressionism. Her paintings and art prints are unique emotional voyages, a secret self-mirror, destined to exclusive and selective collectors, created for a spectator who dares to face the real art, who follows his own heart and experience without questioning and consulting it with those who built up an art market web. BIO by Private Walls Gallery: In search of the human essence As an artist, Anastasia Kurakina nurtures a great fondness for human beings. Fascinated by the complex psychology of each individual, she repeatedly tries to capture those characteristics that define our uniqueness. This is why she prefers to work from living models. 'If someone is sitting in front of me, I can feel that person much more intensely and arrive at a fascinating pose while talking. I find it even more interesting to portray people in their own environment, because their homes often reveal a lot about who they are,' Kurakina says. Although she also works on commission, Kurakina does not shy away from addressing people who fascinate her on the street. In this sense, her - main - hometown of London is an inexhaustible source of inspiration. 'Londoners come from everywhere, and often dress very personally. Moreover, on the street you often see people from different backgrounds walking together. That contrast reinforces their individuality. I have a fondness for people who are not too perfect and who radiate a kind of suffering. I find it fascinating to try to capture that inner struggle, and so give my portrait more depth. Through their eyes, I can capture the soul of each person.' Each portrait starts with the eyes and a few rough, black outlines. These define the image, which then gradually emerges naturally. 'It's like walking in the mist, and the image gradually becomes clearer and clearer. The fact that I myself don't know exactly what will happen makes it fascinating. I only see myself as a participant in a creative process. The colours also arise intuitively and are dictated by the state of mind of the person I am portraying. I pay attention to the smallest details and emotional reactions, and try to translate them into an individual portrait,' Kurakina says. 'Thanks to this psychological analysis, my paintings show emotions that people never experience in the mirror or through a photograph. What they try to hide, I deepen and make visible. I try to penetrate to the essence of their being. Although that scares some people, there is no need for it. Because as Picasso said: in the end, every artist portrays himself first and foremost.' Pure magic Although she works with various techniques and materials, Kurakina's preference is for watercolour on paper. 'I love the directness of watercolour. Every painterly gesture is definitive, and therefore surprising. Moreover, watercolour allows you to leave a large part of the background white, so the image dialogues with the background and, thanks to its transparency, acquires a certain lightness. Although I sometimes dare to apply a few strokes of oil paint, as a solid counterbalance to the soft watercolours.' 'Like Henri Matisse and Italian Renaissance painters like Giotto, I experiment with the vibrant power of colours, trying to leave academic knowledge behind. Like Egon Schiele, I play with framing, making my characters seem to want to escape from their frame. Each new work arises instinctively, and is also a discovery for me every time. If other people experience the same emotions afterwards, that is pure magic.' text by private Walls Gallery In search of the human essence As an artist, Anastasia Kurakina nurtures a great fondness for human beings. Fascinated by the complex psychology of each individual, she repeatedly tries to capture those characteristics that define our uniqueness. This is why she prefers to work from living models. 'If someone is sitting in front of me, I can feel that person much more intensely and arrive at a fascinating pose while talking. I find it even more interesting to portray people in their own environment, because their homes often reveal a lot about who they are,' Kurakina says. Although she also works on commission, Kurakina does not shy away from addressing people who fascinate her on the street. In this sense, her - main - hometown of London is an inexhaustible source of inspiration. 'Londoners come from everywhere, and often dress very personally. Moreover, on the street you often see people from different backgrounds walking together. That contrast reinforces their individuality. I have a fondness for people who are not too perfect and who radiate a kind of suffering. I find it fascinating to try to capture that inner struggle, and so give my portrait more depth. Through their eyes, I can capture the soul of each person.' Each portrait starts with the eyes and a few rough, black outlines. These define the image, which then gradually emerges naturally. 'It's like walking in the mist, and the image gradually becomes clearer and clearer. The fact that I myself don't know exactly what will happen makes it fascinating. I only see myself as a participant in a creative process. The colours also arise intuitively and are dictated by the state of mind of the person I am portraying. I pay attention to the smallest details and emotional reactions, and try to translate them into an individual portrait,' Kurakina says. 'Thanks to this psychological analysis, my paintings show emotions that people never experience in the mirror or through a photograph. What they try to hide, I deepen and make visible. I try to penetrate to the essence of their being. Although that scares some people, there is no need for it. Because as Picasso said: in the end, every artist portrays himself first and foremost.' Pure magic Although she works with various techniques and materials, Kurakina's preference is for watercolour on paper. 'I love the directness of watercolour. Every painterly gesture is definitive, and therefore surprising. Moreover, watercolour allows you to leave a large part of the background white, so the image dialogues with the background and, thanks to its transparency, acquires a certain lightness. Although I sometimes dare to apply a few strokes of oil paint, as a solid counterbalance to the soft watercolours.' 'Like Henri Matisse and Italian Renaissance painters like Giotto, I experiment with the vibrant power of colours, trying to leave academic knowledge behind. Like Egon Schiele, I play with framing, making my characters seem to want to escape from their frame. Each new work arises instinctively, and is also a discovery for me every time. If other people experience the same emotions afterwards, that is pure magic.' text by private Walls Gallery Anastasia Kurakina recently exhibited at the Royal Society of British Artists at the Bicentennial Exhibition 2023 at the Mall Galleries in London, YICCA Contemporary Art Prize 2023 in Venice,Italy, London Biennale 2023 in London, Chelsea Old Town Hall in 2023. She was one of the best 50 portrait artist in the world selected for the BP Portrait Award exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery London in 2017. Her drawings are included at the Vatican Museum collection of contemporary art. Kurakina“s works are a personal interiorization that matches the search for a deeper meaning, beyond visible reality. Her”s is a desire to go beyond the pure representation of reality, a need to tell something that goes beyond the external aspect, that something that speaks of the inner part of those who are portrayed. Portrait of a girl and a boy with pink poodle Original painting on canvas. Love Hunter after a the fields of passion and pleasure. Note the juxtaposition in the top left hand corner, where the hunter becomes the hunted...

original watercolour on paper 28x38cm hand signed 2023 Created by Anastasia Kurakina, contemporary artist living in London. The artist has recently exhibited at London Art Biennal...

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