Uncategorized – orangepeel literary magazine

interview with luana góes

Luana Góes is an artist from Brazil whose “dear memory” is featured on the cover of orangepeel‘s seventh issue, Preserved. Her work can also be found in our third issue, Take A Slice & Stay A While.

op: Could you give us a quick introduction to yourself?

lg: My name is Luana Góes, I’m a 21 year old mixed media artist based in the Amazon region of Brazil. I love using different mediums like oil pastels, watercolors, acrylics and collages to create unique mixed media pieces. Although my first love is traditional art, I also like to explore digital ways to create art or edit. Besides visual art, I also take an interest in design, video editing, and music. I love being a part of projects and creating or collaborating with friends.

op: How long have you been an artist?

lg: I’ve been interested in art ever since I was a kid. I liked art classes when I was younger and in high school I spent time in the classroom drawing on my notebook and filling entire pages. I only started dedicating more time to it, however, when I was about 16. That’s when I got my first paints and when I started exploring different mediums. Mental health shaped a lot of the art I did back then. I learned how to use the scanner of the old printer in my house, and decided to create an account to share my art and connect with other people. I’m forever grateful for the friends I’ve made and the projects I’ve participated in. I’ve come a long way since and my art style has developed a lot, but it’s all a constant state of change and evolving.

op: Congratulations on being our cover artist for this issue! What’s the story behind “dear memory”?

lg: Thank you for having me! “dear memory” is a piece that was born after my trip to Recife, Brazil, a city I had never visited. My best friend is studying there at university, and me and my twin sister went to visit her and spent such a great week there. I did so much art on this trip and when I got home I still felt inspired to do more. I remember a moment when we went to have breakfast in this cute place, and it had huge windows and I could see the buildings and the sky. The drawing is inspired by the memory of that day. I actually wrote “dear,” as the first thing in the paper, but later covered it with blue oil pastels so it’s not that visible. But you can see it if you look for it!

op: This is the second time you’re featured in orangepeel, the first being your collage “o café tá pronto?” in our third issue. “dear memory,” however, is a pastel drawing. What is your favorite medium to work in?

lg: My favorite medium depends a lot on what I’m feeling and on what my intent is with the piece. I find oil pastels to be very expressive so I use it a lot in my sketchbook or when I have a specific feeling I wanna translate to paper. Watercolors are quick, so I use them for doodles or painting from life. I carry my watercolor set with me on trips, for example. Acrylics and collages I usually use for full pieces, so that takes more planning and thumbnailing. In the end, I end up using it all in a singular piece sometimes. But I have to say, it’s all about feeling and experimenting. My favorite medium is ultimately linked to traditional art. Even though I also like digital, traditional comes easier to me when it comes to creating texture, which is something I value a lot in my art.

op: Lastly, what are three things you want us to know about you or your work?

lg: 1. Art should be enjoyed. I try not to take myself too seriously. Creating is fun and I’m grateful to be able to do it.

2. In the future, I wanna explore more art inspired by my region and heritage.

3. I love creating random zines or projects with friends. My most recent passion project is a website where I will be posting interviews with my friends through a flipbook/zine, and the first interview is out! You can read it at spotlightproject.vercel.app, and you can keep in touch with me through instagram (@luana.g.m) or twitter (@wxarpaint).

Thank you, Luana, for these thoughtful and informative responses to our questions! Don’t miss Luana’s artworks in our third and seventh issues.

interview with diane phares

Diane Phares is an artist currently living in New Jersey, USA. Two of her works can be found in orangepeel Preserved.

op: Could you give us a quick introduction to yourself?

dp: I’m an artist, born in Brooklyn, now living in the countryside of New Jersey. I enjoyed a career as an art teacher and am now concentrating on my own art practice. Grateful to have the support of my artist husband, family, and friends.

op: What inspired you to create this “Women’s Work” series?

dp: I am inspired to paint strong women from my circle of friends and family. These two works are the first in the series intended to promote economic, social, and political equality for women. Each individual quilt pattern piece builds upon another to become whole, seen, and valued as are the women depicted.

op: Who do we see represented in the center squares of both quilts?

dp: For the first two pieces in this series, I took inspiration from important women in my life. The quilt pieces themselves are over 100 years old and were gifted to me years ago from a dear family member. Now they have a new life in a new era for women.

op: Are you primarily a quilter, or do you work in many mediums? If so, which is your favorite?

dp: Sewing and thread are often the binding elements of my work; however, I am not a quilter as such. I create painted pieces of canvas, stitch them together by hand or machine, add collage to works on paper, or use elements such as embroidery floss on painted works. My works are often comprised of multiple images that reference family history, women’s issues, and current events.

op: Lastly, what are three things you want us to know about you or your work?

dp: 1. Many of my paintings are pieced together by hand or machine stitching, referring to the work performed in sweatshops by my aunts who supported their family while the men served in World War II.

2. Anything can inspire me. I’ve started work on a series of monotypes entitled “Aprons” after reading about a female referee in a fútbol match who was told to stick to the kitchen.

3. My art can take any form: painting, printmaking, sculpture, bookmaking, etc., as I don’t restrict my work to a single medium.

Thank you for this insightful interview, Diane! Keep an eye out for the “Women’s Work” spread in orangepeel‘s seventh issue.

interview with genevieve hartman

Genevieve “Gena” Hartman is a poet and reviewer from New York, USA. Her poems “evelyn” and “canning at grandma’s” can be found in the pages of orangepeel issue 7, Preserved.

op: Could you give us a quick introduction to yourself?

gh: Sure! My name is Gena (pronounced like Jenna). I’m a poet and reviewer based in Rochester, NY. I’m half Korean, I grew up in my parent’s bookstore, and I love walking my dog Honey and birdwatching alongside the Erie Canal. I’ve been surrounded by books for my whole life, so it’s no wonder I’m now working as a publicist for indie poetry press Alice James Books, and on staff at Adi Magazine and Gasher Journal.

op: When did you begin writing poetry?

gh: I started writing poetry when I was in my early teens. Of course, it was horrible, and it’s never seen the light of day, but I learned then that writing poems could be a way to process and to bear witness to my life and the lives of people around me, a sort of “here we are!” in the midst of a wide world.

op: Both of your poems that are featured in this issue, “canning at grandma’s” and “evelyn,” do a great job of preserving memories. How do you choose which details to include in one of your poems?

gh: Both poems were written long after the actual events took place, so most of the details I included were the ones that I actually remembered. I wanted to save as much of these moments as I could, knowing how fleeting time with loved ones can be. These poems are a kind of personal and family history, recording memories too important to lose. “canning at grandma’s” has a companion piece (published in Stone Canoe a few years back) that recollects a time I made kimchi with my Korean grandma—the other side of my heritage.

op: “evelyn” is movingly in memory of a specific person. How did she impact you and your poetry?

gh: You know, I’ve never thought about how Evelyn impacted my writing, so I really appreciate this question. I think I always felt an extra kinship with her, since Evelyn was my middle name, too. But as I mention in the poem, we were pen pals for years. I wasn’t even ten, and she was in her sixties or seventies, I think. It made me feel so special and important to mail her letters, and to get her letters in return. So in that way, she really did foster my writing. Evelyn treated me like I was her grandchild. I remember making cookies at her house, sneezing whenever I came close to her fluffy cat, and receiving beautiful jewelry from her that her daughter had made. She was such a kind and generous person.

op: Lastly, what are three things you want us to know about you or your work?

gh: This is a tough question.

I am so grateful for and hold so close the work of contemporary Asian poets and writers: Li-Young Lee, Chen Chen, Jane Wong, Christine Kitano, Wo Chan, Danni Quintos, Emily Jungmin Yoon, Cathy Park Hong, Kim Hye-jin, Celeste Ng, and so many others whose books have taught me so much and made me feel seen. I don’t take for granted the gift of reading their work.

I’m currently reading Grace M. Cho’s memoir Tastes Like War, and it’s heartbreaking and mesmerizing to read about her and her family’s story. It’s making me wonder about my own family’s experiences during the Korean War. In this way, I am always thinking about memory and how our personal histories define us.

Lastly, I am always thinking about buying a new houseplant!

We greatly appreciate your wonderful responses, Gena! Keep an eye out for her poetry in our seventh issue.

interview with megan shope

Megan Shope is a collage and soft sculpture artist living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. Three of her works, two visual art and one written, can be found in Preserved.

op: Could you give us a quick introduction to yourself?

ms: I’m Megan—I live in Pittsburgh, PA, with my husband, our 2 teenage boys and 3 yr old spicy girl. I’m a mixed media collage and soft sculpture artist mainly working with found materials. Transforming ordinary materials I find in our every day lives into something new is my jam. I love the sky, bright colors, and hot, hot coffee.

op: How long have you been embroidering?

ms: Hmm—that’s an interesting question because I don’t remember ever really being taught how to embroider. My paternal grandmother taught me how to crochet in elementary school. There was also a season in my life when I was very into making friendship bracelets with embroidery thread and also dabbled in a little cross stitch, but that was decades ago! I picked up embroidery in the last year as we’ve come out of Covid in many ways and the teen activities have been in place again. I spend a lot of time driving our boys to and from activities and it’s much easier to throw thread and fabric in a bag and continue a piece than it is with paint or other mediums. The promise of all of that gorgeous embroidery thread is very appealing!

op: Where do you find the handkerchiefs that you use in your art?

ms: The vintage handkerchiefs that I used in these pieces came from my neighborhood Buy Nothing group—my favorite place to source new materials! My teens tease me that my Buy Nothing group is my side hustle and it’s definitely been a lifesaver as I try to embrace using the materials that are already around me in my art practice.

op: We really appreciate the context that you provide in “Slow & Steady, I mend.” Is writing a significant part of your art practice?

ms: I love writing and have been writing since I was very young. The artist statement or writing that goes along with a piece or a body of work is very significant to me. At times when the statement is not included in certain exhibits I sometimes struggle even looking at the art—I want to know more. I am a context fanatic!

op: Lastly, what are three things you want us to know about you or your work?

ms: 1) My work is all about embracing the process. I take a ton of process pictures as a piece unfolds—I love documenting the change and evolution of a piece. The idea I have in my head and the final outcome can be very far apart! The work guides me, and I try to be open to that process.

2) My art is how I work through the really beautiful and the really terrible in my life. I love exploring the layers of our roles and experiences and holding space for the both/and of life in a compelling visual manner.

3) I love color, pattern, and texture and you can see that in a lot of my work. I take a ton of pictures of various colors, patterns and textures I encounter every day. I have spent the last several years learning to slow down and really be present and notice in my life. Taking those pictures is one way in which I practice that in the midst of my very full days.

Many thanks to Megan for participating in our interview series! Don’t miss Megan’s works, available in our seventh issue.

interview with paloma valencia

Paloma Valencia, a printmaker and painter living in Chicago, Illinois, USA, has two artworks featured in orangepeel‘s Boardwalk Beats.

op: Could you give us a quick introduction to yourself?

pv: My name is Paloma Valencia, I’m a printmaker and painter based in Chicago, IL. In my art practice, I commemorate the storefronts and interiors of local businesses through print. These spaces inspire me because they are invaluable to the authentic identities and histories of the neighborhoods that I have lived in.

When I’m not carving or printing my own work, I teach printmaking classes on weekends to first-time students at Lillstreet Art Center.

op: We’d love to hear about how you created “The Palacio Inn Motel” and “The Parkway Inn Motel,” both featured in Boardwalk Beats.

pv: My prints start as photographs, I take them spontaneously on walks to draw inspiration from when I’m in the studio. I reduced both images to halftone dot patterns that I could reproduce as screenprints and offset prints. I use a combination of traditional drawings, vector drawings, and hand-cut paper to create each layer. I create digital mock-ups so I can get a better understanding of how the placement of each layer influences the composition of the final image.

Using a UV light table and photo emulsion, I expose the layers into my silkscreen in a darkroom. After my screen is exposed and dry, I mix my ink colors and meticulously print the layers to build the image. Each print in the edition should be identical, so it’s essential that a lot of care goes into each step!

op: Are motels a subject that you return to often?

pv: I do! I originally grew up in Miami, Florida, very close to the airport. Both of these motels are very close to my childhood home. I would pass them nearly every day on my way home from school growing up.

As a child, I was curious about them. To me, they represent a part of Miami’s identity that does not exist anymore but influences the history of the city — car culture, the post-war expansion of Pan-Am, the glamorous fantasy and transient reality of travel in the 1950s and 60s. The structures of these motels, designed and streamlined for comfort and convenience, are what remains of this unique local history.

op: We love the use of color in both “The Palacio Inn Motel” and “The Parkway Inn Motel.” How did you choose the palette for each?

pv: The architectural features of both motels influenced the color palette. The Palacio Inn Motel is typical of the Googie movement, so I wanted the colors to feel vibrant and playful to highlight the fun design features in its facade. The Parkway Inn Motel has a more linear design with hard angles, I felt that a high contrast color palette with muted colors matched the mood of the scene more. I view both of these prints as portraits of their buildings, I had a lot of fun trying to identify the personalities of both motels.

op: Lastly, what are three things you want us to know about you or your work?

pv: 1. While my work featured in orangepeel is offset printed and screen printed, I primarily specialize in linocut printmaking. It is my favorite medium (for now). I find drawing and carving directly into a block very therapeutic.

2. My prints are informed by architectural history, but I draw a great deal of inspiration from other art forms: 70’s Beatnik photography (Stephen Shore, William Eggleston, Robert Adams), film (David Lynch, the Coen brothers), and music (John Prine, Tom Waits, Dolly Parton, Buena Vista Social Club).

3. In addition to my classes, I’m teaching my first print-and-sip (a play on paint-and-sip) workshop in Chicago on August 24th. We are going to be carving our own stamps and block-printing onto fabric! I’m excited to share this fun skill and meet like-minded creative people. If you are interested in participating, the link for tickets is on my website, www.palomaprints.co, and my Instagram, @palomaprints.

Many thanks to Paloma for being part of orangepeel! Don’t miss her amazing prints featured in Boardwalk Beats.

interview with gabriele artusio

Gabriele Artusio is an artist from Volpiano, Italy. His work “Ines (Arlecchina al mare)” is featured on the cover of orangepeel‘s Boardwalk Beats.

op: Could you give us a quick introduction to yourself?

ga: Hi. My name is Gabriele Artusio. I am an Italian artist and illustrator based in Volpiano (near Turin), Italy.

op: How long have you been an artist?

ga: I loved drawing since I was young but at first, I did not have a clear idea of what I wanted to be. I figured out my path in time thanks to school (Liceo Artistico Aldo Passoni in Turin first and then the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera in Milan) and through different experiences such as comic illustration and textile design, but I only recently found a balance.

op: “Ines (Arlecchina al mare)“ is the cover art for orangepeel Issue 6.5, Boardwalk Beats. What is the inspiration behind this piece?

ga: The artwork is part of my ongoing series featuring the character of Ines, which I created. This one in particular was the first of a series of works inspired by Tom Wesselman’s art and in general by a certain retro summer aesthetic I fell in love with.

op: We especially love the checkerboard pattern that surrounds the figure in the center of this piece. Do you play with patterns a lot in your art?

ga: Yes. Patterns and repetition in general play a big part in my art. While the checkerboard pattern of the artwork is inspired by some walls and showers you can find in some bathhouses and beaches in the French Riviera, in other works of mine I like to repeat the character of Ines as if it was a wallpaper.

op: Lastly, what are three things you want us to know about you or your work?

ga: My recent artistic production is centered around the character of Ines. I created her for a comic story I never finished but she remained a constant presence in my sketches and drawing. So, I understood that she could be a container where to put all my interests and suggestions (from Japanese culture, to textile design, etc.) and make all my production coherent. In the majority of my works, I choose a theme (that can be a certain kind of dress, a place/event/environment, even just a color or a characteristic) and I analyze it through the lens that this character is. In this way I can experiment different techniques while keeping a connecting line between all my works. In these last years I had the chance to exhibit my artworks between Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark and the US (two works of mine featured in the group exhibition Everything But The Kitchen Sinks 2022 at La Luz de Jesus Gallery in L.A.) and I was featured in several magazines (Badseedzine, Fyinpaper, Womanlymag and Nuname), and recently I am experimenting on more pictorial techniques and trying different supports such as rough canvas and rice paper scroll books.

Thank you, Gabriele, for answering our questions and submitting such striking art! We’re so glad to have “Ines (Arlecchina al mare)” on the cover of Boardwalk Beats.

interview with haleigh givens

Haleigh Givens is an artist living in the Midwestern United States. Two of her artworks, “The trouble of compromising with a loose tooth” and “Telling whispered secrets to the walls and the sheets,” are featured in orangepeel: in conversation.

op: Could you give us a quick introduction to yourself?

hg: Hi, hello, my name is Haleigh Givens. I am an artist currently jumping between cities and states. I spend part time in St. Louis, Missouri and the rest of my week in Carbondale, Illinois. (Yes, I know). This amount of traveling has changed my work in ways I couldn’t have imagined when I picked up my frantic new schedule. Often, I find a lot of my inspiration through walks I take with my dog: dead birds, weird trees, or through the techniques and styles that come through the tattoo shop I work at. I make it a point to be always trying to create, even if that creation doesn’t lead to much. Thank you, welcome, and I am, truly, sorry.

op: What medium(s) do you use when creating art?

hg: My work mostly uses colored pencils with some watercolor as a base, over that I love the mixing of anything I can get my hands on. I’ve used coffee, dirt, ink pens, Copic markers, paint, crayons — if I like it and am curious, there’s a good chance I want to use it. With that being said, I mainly rely on the use of pencils for largest part of my drawings. For myself, there is a type of familiarity with the medium that allows me comfort in using it that lets me turn off the part of my brain where I have to focus heavily on the medium itself. With this comfort I feel as though I am allowed more freedom in letting my drawing go where it needs to.

op: Our staff found the inspirations you cited for both of your featured works, “The trouble of compromising with a loose tooth” and “Telling whispered secrets to the walls and the sheets,” to be fascinating. What about these topics stood out to you?

hg: Art history is something I became fascinated with during my undergrad. People have been making art for so long and it became a connection point for me. As someone who grew up in a very religious household, seeing religious icons was not an uncommon thing. Through art history I was introduced to old Christian symbolism and hand gestures (that you often can find in my work) that I had never seen before. While I may no longer have a good relationship with my religious background, the personal history is still there.

During the first couple of weeks of my MA program a friend loaned me one of the medical books from the CIBA collection by Frank Netter. Grotesque, bulging, and hard to look at: I was hooked. The majority of my drawings from that time were heavily influenced by the various diseases I was coming across in my research, but these drawings never felt finished. After the program was finished I began to tear these canvases apart, giving myself a new opportunity to make something I enjoy.

op We especially liked the ‘speech bubbles’ that are in these two pieces. Is there a reason that you employ those in your art?

hg: The speech bubbles started as a joke with myself. I put them on a lot of my work. For me, they signify words not said, and instead of filling them I enjoy leaving them blank or with little symbols. It has always been difficult for me to find the right words to say in any given situation. So the speech bubbles have become a constant ‘what if’ of the unspoken and true emotions.

op: Finally, what are three things you want us to know about you or your work?

I have made myself okay with change, piece to piece, day to day. Not every piece of art is coming from the same place and that makes it fun, if not challenging. I’ve always wanted to keep my art lighthearted and not personal and I have never been able to hit one of those marks. My work, I’ve realized, is deeply personal and I often use it as a method to help myself come to terms with and understand my own emotions.

Thank you for taking the time to go through my rambling. I’m just some idiot nerd who likes to draw too much and spend a lot of time in my tiny art corner with my terrible dog.

Many thanks to Haleigh for participating in the series and for sharing her works with our publication! Find Haleigh’s work in Issue 6, orangepeel: in conversation.

interview with christina hennemann

Christina Hennemann is a poet and writer, originally from Germany, who currently calls Ireland home. She has been featured in orangepeel three times and we’re thrilled to feature her poem “Ismene” in orangepeel: in conversation.

op: Could you give us a quick introduction to yourself?
ch: I’m a poet and prose writer based in the beautiful West of Ireland, where I also work as a teacher. Originally, I’m from Germany, and my background is in English literature, Sociology and Politics. I’d always written poems, lyrics and stories in secret before I started to send out my work in 2021, and since then it’s been a bit of a wild ride. Last summer, my debut poetry pamphlet was published. I’ve also written two novels and am seeking representation by an agent at the moment, so I’m always keeping busy!

op: You’ve become one of our most published contributors, with poems and
photography in three of our issues. How do you stay so productive?
ch: First of all, I’d like to say thank you to you guys for publishing me. orangepeel was my first poetry acceptance, and so you gave me a massive boost of confidence in my work. I guess I’m so productive because I really enjoy writing, and I would even say I need it to stay sane. Being creative is my passion and what fulfills me on a deep level – I don’t have much of a choice but to create. I can draw inspiration from almost everything, from daily life to art and travelling, the sky’s the limit.

Then I also try to let new pieces sit a while and come back to them with fresh eyes. That part takes discipline, and I intentionally carve out time in my schedule to edit my work and submit it to journals. But it’s not hard for me to do all this work as I’m quite driven and ambitious. People who are close to me might say obsessive… It’s rather a challenge for me to switch off and set boundaries around my work as a writer. Overall, I would say my process is finding balance between flow and structure.

op: “Ismene” focuses on a character that is often in the background of another story. What made you choose her as your subject?
ch: I found Ismene interesting, because she goes through the most substantial character development in the play. She is first portrayed as weak-willed and fickle, but later she is ready to help Antigone and shoulder the responsibility. She compromises her own values for the sake of her sister and her strict civil obedience lessens. Ismene is fearful, and understandably so, but she is willing to gather her courage and support
her sister despite all doubts. For me, she represents that feeling of being torn between conforming to law and order while also standing up for the family and personal values. Ismene’s character authentically shows what it’s like to step outside one’s comfort zone. She develops and grows during the play, which cannot be said for the heroine Antigone, who remains strong-willed and heroic throughout the play, even callously rejecting her own sister.

I chose to highlight Ismene’s perspective as a counterpoint to Antigone’s heroism. In society, we can’t all be heroes. In fact, heroes are not always the warmest and most empathetic characters. We need mediators and skeptics like Ismene, too. I’m thinking of the climate crisis in relation to this as well: we can’t all be radical activists.

While they drive societal progress and act as pioneers, we also need moderators, mediators, implementors and law enforcers to tackle these huge challenges.

Overall, I think it’s too easy to only look at the hero or heroine. To me, it’s much more inspiring to explore what drives people’s growth, how they overcome fear and doubt, and how they dissolve dichotomy.

op: What writers and poets do you cite as your biggest inspirations?
ch: Growing up, I was mainly exposed to white male writers, which isn’t per se a bad thing, but I didn’t encounter a very diverse literary canon. I loved most of the books I read in school, such as Paul Auster’s Moon Palace, Shakespeare’s sonnets and plays, Wolfgang Koeppen’s Pigeons on the Grass and Max Frisch’s Homo Faber. During the last few years in school, I read Arundhati Roy and Salman Rushdie in class, and that opened my eyes to a whole new world in literature.

Nowadays, I read a diverse range of authors. I adore Ocean Vuong and Ada Limón. I could read their poetry every single day. Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath break my heart, which is why I can’t bear to read their poetry every single day, but their work is truly beautiful and still incredibly visionary. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Americanah and Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions are all-time favourite novels of mine. Since moving to Ireland, I’m also hugely influenced by Irish writers. Of course I admire the work of W.B. Yeats and Eavan Boland, but there are a lot of fantastic contemporary novelists and poets as well. Sally Rooney, Megan Nolan, Victoria Kennefick, and Molly Twomey are at the top of my list right now. Oh, and the first time
I thought, “I want to write a book when I grow up,” was when I read Cecelia Ahern’s P.S. I Love You as a kid, so she is also responsible for me putting my work out there now!

op: Lastly, what are three things you want us to know about you or your work?
ch: To be honest, I find personal questions more difficult than writing a poem, because I tend to overthink my answers. I prefer to let my work speak for itself. But what I really want people to know is that you don’t have to come from money or an academic family to become a writer. While I do acknowledge the many privileges I had growing up in a wealthy Western country, I can’t say that anyone particularly encouraged me to pursue this path – quite the opposite, rather. And yet here I am, despite all the obstacles, pursuing my passion. Hopefully this will be expansive for anyone struggling to believe in themselves.

Christina’s work can be found in Issues 2, 2.5, and 6. Thank you for your time, Christina!

interview with aurora abzug

Aurora Abzug is a painter from Philadelphia, USA. Her painting “Soft Spot” is featured in orangepeel: in conversation, and this is her second time being published by the magazine.

op: Could you give us a quick introduction to yourself?
aa: I’m Aurora! I’m a Philadelphia-based emerging painter. I make art with a focus on how personal identity is sculpted in the material and digital realms.

op: You’ve contributed to orangepeel before, with “Instagramable” having appeared in our third issue in February of last year. What has changed since then?
aa: A lot has changed since I had the joy of publishing a piece with orangepeel last! I’ve begun working with a gallery, exhibiting at art fairs, and recently attended a month-long artist residency in rural northern Iceland. While last year I was beginning to explore the interplay of social media and the material world in my art, my most recent work focuses more specifically on how objects, products, media, and the screen facilitate emotional processing and connection.

op: Your photorealistic paintings are absolutely amazing. How do you get to that level of realism?
aa: I’ve been painting since I was three years old! It’s my first language. I owe my level of technical skill to both the sheer amount of time I’ve spent painting, as well as my support system’s early and continuing encouragement of my painterly pursuit. An additional seven years of rigorous observational painting training as well as four years of art school also helped!

op: “Soft Spot” is inspired by the film Picnic at Hanging Rock. How did you come upon this source of inspiration?
aa: Okay, in all honesty I had just seen that gif set of the cake scene too many times on Tumblr and finally watched the film for real two or three years ago — and it was amazing! I felt really deeply connected with the characters and their mysterious emotional journeys, and returning to the film helped me traverse difficult emotions in my own life.

op: Finally, what are three things you want us to know about you or your work?
aa: 1. I baked the cake in the painting— when I’m not painting, I’m a hobbyist cake girl! 2. It was vanilla cake with ruby chocolate ganache frosting. 3. I stole the knife from my old roommate and never gave it back… Stephen, if you’re reading this, I’m sorry, I don’t know where it is anymore.

So many thanks to Aurora for this fun interview! Find her works “Instagramable” and “Soft Spot” in Issues 3 and 6, respectively.

interview with sai chi

Sai Chi is an artist, writer, and dog groomer living in Florida, USA. Her work can be found in orangepeel: in conversation and orangepeel’s collage of us, part 2.

op: Could you give us a quick introduction to yourself?

sc: My name is Sai Chi. I’m 28 years old and living off the coast of Florida. I’m a mobile dog groomer and I love the job because it introduces me to new people and allows me plenty of free time to pursue my passion for storytelling. I favor making work that creates a narrative through a combination of writing and visual art.

op: We love the way that you weave visual art with writing, both in this issue’s “Letter to Lady Lazarus” and “The Price of Blackberries” from issue 4.2. How did you start creating this kind of work?

sc: I was inspired to start making this kind of work at a young age. When I was in the fifth grade I read a book called Abarat by Clive Barker. Not only was it a compelling fantasy story, but the book was also filled with something like eighty full-color oil paintings. I’d been writing short stories for about a year at this point, and I immediately fell in love with the idea of using artwork to enhance the experience of the written word.

op: Your work is one of two in orangepeel: in conversation inspired by Sylvia Plath, and she was actually one of the most cited inspirations for this issue’s submissions. In your opinion, what makes her writing so effective?

sc: I think a large part of what makes Plath’s writing so effective is the way that it welcomes interpretation rather than defying it. Plath doesn’t write allegory and nor does she write anything so bizarre as to move beyond the realm of meaning. Her language invites the reader to bring themselves into the work. In my opinion, there is no one way to interpret a poem by Sylvia Plath. That’s what made “conversing” with her poem “Lady Lazarus” so fun for me. The poem means several different things to me and I had to consciously choose which interpretation I was going to respond to when creating “Letter to Lady Lazarus.”

op: Aside from Sylvia Plath, what creatives (from any discipline) inspire you most?

sc: So many! It’s hard to make a short list…

Musicians: SJ Tucker and Lingua Ignota
Artists: Dave McKean and Caravaggio
Writers: Catherynne M. Valente and Terry Pratchett
I’m also really enjoying watching clips of performance art by Svitlana Zavialova right now.

op: Finally, what are three things you want us to know about you or your work?

sc: The underlying ethos behind my work is: magic is real and stories matter. When I start a piece, I’m making it for myself because I believe in creating art that is personal. When I share a piece, I do so with the hope that the work finds its audience and that the audience takes what they need from it.

Thank you, Sai! Readers, be sure to check out both “Letter to Lady Lazarus” (orangepeel: in conversation) and “The Price of Blackberries” (collage of us, part 2).