Interview: Elliot Avis
Conducted by Story Pennock
Pennock: Can you provide us with some insight into the factors that have influenced your artistic development and how they have informed your work?
Avis: Certainly, I take a lot of influence from mythology and art history, as well as cartoons and video games from my childhood. I think my physical approach to painting is influenced a lot by impressionism, as well as German expressionist painters like Baselitz and Lupertz. And I think the colors and compositional aesthetics are heavily influenced by late 90s and early 2000s media.
Pennock: Your artistic style is both unique and thought-provoking. Could you elaborate on the themes that you explore in your work and how you go about creating the warped perspective in your pieces?
Avis: I explore a lot of different ideas in my work but ones that seem to come up repeatedly have to do with gender, identity, labor, and psychological landscapes. I like my work to be simultaneously flat but also with a strong sense of depth, I like that contradiction. And I often emphasized by juxtaposing impasto layers against flat planes.
Pennock: What inspired you to tackle such complex subject matter in Botting and how did you execute your vision?
Avis: I started working on these Runescape-inspired pieces back at the start of 2020 and they have evolved a lot since then. With this show, I wanted to really push the connections between the medieval fantasy world of Runescape and paintings from art history that depict labor and struggle.
Pennock: How do you incorporate elements regarding art history into your pieces and what message do you hope to convey through them?
Avis: It usually starts with me finding or thinking about a painting that I really enjoy, and using them as a compositional springboard for my own work. It's also a fun way for me to have a dialogue across centuries with artists that I admire. I like that my painting from 2023 and a painting from history can both be addressing an issue or idea that was present back then and is still relevant now. It's a way to empathize and relate to time.
Pennock: Can you discuss your creative process in detail, including how you approach developing ideas and bringing them to life through your artwork?
Avis: There are several projects and ideas I am always thinking about and working on, but everything starts with my drawing practice, whether its a doodle, writing out new ideas, or making a small work on paper; It's that practice of working quickly and consistently on paper that leads to everything else.
Pennock: The art community in St. Petersburg is known for its vibrancy and diversity. How has this community impacted your work and how do you see your art contributing to the larger art scene in the area?
Avis: This show was my first time visiting St. Petersburg, and it was a real treat. It can be kind of scary coming to Florida with the current political discourse, but St. Petersburg was a true oasis from that. It felt like a kind and accepting place for all people, and the grassroots enthusiasm for the art scene here was infectious.
Pennock: What are some of the key takeaways that you hope viewers gain from your art, particularly from your recent installation, Botting?
Avis: I just enjoy it when people like my work. Whether they like the video game style, or the art historical references, or the colors and the way I work with paint, it feels good to have people resonate with the work on multiple levels.
Pennock: Looking ahead, what new themes and ideas do you hope to explore through your work and how do you plan to continue to evolve your artistic style and approach?
Avis: There are a lot of new projects I want to work on. This show was a real deep dive into a specific subject and theme, and while I enjoyed that I am looking forward to a new body of work that touches on a lot of different subjects and themes and is not so straightforward. It's scary to evolve and change but as an artist, it is also necessary. My favorite painters are the ones who constantly evolve and grow, and I aspire to do the same.
Story Pennock is a college student and co-founder of the Rosebud News. As her name would suggest, she loves telling stories and giving her unsolicited opinion about literature, history, and current events. Her pastimes include going to museums, reading, researching historical fashion, playing guitar, listening to Brit-pop and maintaining her Duo Lingo Italian/Turkish/Portuguese streak (just dont ask her to say anything other than nouns).