Angel Sullivan

[Last modified: March, 30 2022 05:25 PM]

Artist Statement

My creative practice is inspired by my own struggles with mental health and identity. Through approaches using mixtures of figuration and surrealism I create my own form of abstract expressionism. This stems from childhood influences and psychedelic art. A lot of my practice has the foundations of a research-based approach. However, that then influences my own thoughts helping me to create these themes that begin delving into subjects surrounding surrealism. With my work i’m attempting to break away from realism and journey into a more distorted sense of reality – drawing creation from triggers and responses developed in the unconscious. Peering into the world of psychology I was able to learn more about the role of mental health in connection to dreams. I also looked at artists such as; Salvador Dali and Nicolas Bruno.
Furthermore, techniques of drawing and ink work are an evident pattern within my practice. I started out as a portrait and ink artist, which I think shows through my line work.

[Last modified: March, 30 2022 04:38 PM]

Artist bio

Angel sullivan is a third year BFA art student at Slade School of Fine Art (UCL) in London and is graduating this year. Sullivan also studied on a foundation course at City and islington college that helped her come out of her shell and find her artistic style. Here she explored sculpture, print and installation. At city and islington college she was also able to take part in the Tate exchange exhibition at tate modern art gallery. This meant presenting her own work in the gallery along with her foundation class (this included portraits and group installation pieces), the public were able to view and interact with the artists and the pieces. Sullivan talks on her experiences of overthinking alongside sleep disturbances at a young age – which seemed to be the trigger for various feelings of anxiety she portrays in her work. The artist transfers her emotions into art – using dreams as an inspiration for patterns and texture. All whilst Exploring emerging aspects of reality and dream state. The result is a merge of these ideas expressed through surrealism, psychedelic and fantasy art.

[Last modified: March, 30 2022 04:30 PM]

‘Bird cage’22’ 

 -This is my most recent painting, though unfinished. It explores the feelings of anxiety and entrapment into anxiety based on my personal experience. I decided to put myself into this particular painting, and in my hand I am holding an opened bird cage. The bird cage represents feelings of freedom and release from internal conflict, I wanted to express my growth. 

For this piece I used a new technique of blending to create a more realistic sky look, pushing my work further, blending brighter/lighter tones such as blues and pinks to create more of a surreal atmosphere. I really wanted to capture the essence of dream state, distorting small features to change the overall feel of the piece. For example the use of hands for tree branches and the hidden faces in the grass. 

[Last modified: March, 30 2022 05:23 PM]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Portrait Series

These are a4 acrylic paintings on cardboard.
I used acrylic paint to splatter the backgrounds keeping subjects in Black and white.

With these portraits I was exploring aspects of psychedelic art and spirituality, delving deeper into different affects and realities in the subconscious. This time I wanted the subject as the main focus , because I started out as a portrait artist I wanted to show my range and ability to capture facial features… with my own twist.

[Last modified: March, 30 2022 05:24 PM]

‘The shadow man’

This is an acrylic painting done on canvas. Here I attempted to shift perspective and showcase a merge of positive and negatives in the mind by contrasting lighter and darker colours. I wanted the bottom of the piece to feel vibrant and happy, whilst the top was dark and uneasy. This is because much of my early work at Slade was quite dark and I wanted to slowly bring out a different side to my work.
In this painting I focused particularly on my brush strokes for the grass and the trees, I wanted to try something new and use a dotting technique to build up layers of tone and range in the leaves/ branches. Bringing it not only together… but to life.

[Last modified: March, 30 2022 04:31 PM]

NIGHTWALKER’21
This is an acrylic piece done on A4 canvas. To create my vision I used a lot of different shades and tones of green, I wanted to really work on my textures and making my landscapes look more realistic, whilst exploring blending techniques and nature photography.
The piece is based on Insomnia, it’s meant to represent a scrambled mind walking a path, on that same path I’ve used symbolism to portray choices and the feeling of having different voices telling you what to do and what to feel. In a sense I wanted to unfold my anxiety out on to the canvas.

 

[Last modified: March, 30 2022 04:30 PM]

The canal

This piece was done using both acrylic and water coloured paints. I wanted to avoid dark colours and create a realistic scene that would plant the viewer into the very painting itself.

For this piece I wanted to paint a story and evoke thought from the viewer. For me it was a feeling of being stagnant and watching life happen.I wanted to create a sense of peering down on a scene but never really being part of it. Seeing and knowing your path but also barely escaping the sometimes harsh realities in the way . The hands represent things or people pulling you back( in this case under water) , however the viewer has a birds eye view. They’re not in danger, in fact they’re above it, as if they had been through it before. Being above and beyond it however never forgetting the journey that once was.