The Beginning of Something Extraordinaire
It’s super impressive for an artist to take thoughts and images in their head and turn them into a tangible work of art for us all to see. It is even more impressive when their work travels effortlessly through borders and cultures. Not all artists manage this, only the extraordinaire ones.
So let’s play a lil game. Imagine scrolling through your newsfeed, how many posts make you stop for longer than...let’s say 5 seconds? Very few right? The ones that do are lit. It’s no wonder why when we came across Indie 184, we were blown away by her work. Her bright and colorful paintings, and her striking use of influential women leapt at us.
So what makes Indie 184 an extraordinaire artist?
When Pop Meets Magic Realism
A street artist and fashion designer, Indie 184’s paintings and murals travel from galleries and museums in her home city of New York all the way to the streets of Paris. Super impressive! The explosion of colors in her works is pretty stunning and, above all, tells a story. You can easily recognize her work through her perfect blend of graffiti, photographs, and of course the presence of a woman which is central to her pieces. In her own words she describes her style as “graffiti pop meets magic realism and abstract expressionism.”
Now let’s play another game. Close your eyes (kinda hard if you have to keep reading), and picture a blank canvas. Add scraps of newspaper to make the background. Add some graffiti tags and names to the background. Remember vivid colors! Next add a stylized photo of a powerful woman and pimp it out. Lastly, take a brush and paint a sort of halo around the stylized photo. Voila! You can now picture an Indie 184’s painting. If not check out this painting below (open your eyes if you were still playing the game).
“Every Painting is a Visual Journey”
Now that you can visualize Indie 184’s amazing work, you are probably wondering where she draws her inspiration. Well she says for her “every painting is a visual journey - a self narrative, drawing from real life experiences especially my emotional journey. I grew up all over New York City so naturally graffiti and photography inspire me and is an important element of my work.”
Giving us truly stunning work of art, Indie 184 is showing you can express your emotions and be inspired by surroundings all with an explosion of colors. After all, for Indie 184 “color is a language and energy.”
Be sure to check her out on Instagram @Indie184
