Sophie Iremonger
“Big Lobster”
mixed media on Fabriano paper
148X164cm
2020
Artist Statement:
The work above from 2020/2019 is a reaction against the previous work.Instead of much colour, there is selective colour. The theme of abundance continues, but it is unreachable and grey.Unreachable grey miasmas of food.The paintings are conglomerates of details from 17th century still lives.The details are mashed together to create claustrophobic landscapes of food: food mountains.Yes it’s about consumption, opulence.
Her work explores power, evolution, nature, and landscape. The artist uses a variety of mediums to articulate her thoughts and feelings, including paint, drawing, and collage. Sophie studied at the National College of Art and Design, Dublin and has since exhibited her work internationally, with recent shows in both London and New York. Describes self as: ’Maid of all works for efficientprocessing of junk, external and internal, through line and colour’. More succinctly described as mixed media congealer of compositions dealing with Power, Evolution, Sex, Death, Englishness, Puddings, Nature, Prehistory, Witches, Trees, Menial labour, Stately homes. Emphasis on strong drawing skills collaged with layers of textures and super-natural hues. The thread that unites all this is a struggle to illuminate uncomfortable mental furniture and rearrange it. You still bark your shins against the corners, but at least it’s in ‘pretty colours’, and you can see it from ‘a different angle’.
Bio:
Born 1983 Dublin Ireland, educated at the national college of art and design, Sophie Iremonger graduated in 2008 with a BA in Painting. She has lived in Berlin for the last ten years developing a strong studio practice and has exhibited extensively in Europe and America. She makes paintings, books, and illustrations thematically concerned with wastelands and the junctures between human and non-human worlds. Other themes include food and deconstructing baroque art. Her paintings utilize print, collage, and acrylics. She also illustrates and writes books.