Adriana Oliver

Adriana Oliver

Posted by Frazer Bailey on

Adriana Oliver’s paintings offer a renovation for the pop-art genre. Her minimalistic figures are modern, clean and the stories she represents don’t waste a breath. The greaser slick-backs and star-pricked skylines provide the essence of vintage Hollywood, stripped back to its roots. A real flavour for film emerges in her work, and Adriana appears to have cultivated clippings of Hollywood’s old-school romantic feel, and pruned the nostalgic feeling into something digestible for the 21st Century.

 

Adriana’s foundations in photography provide a strong flavour to her work, illuminating the world in two-dimensional form, but her passion for painting stems from total immersion in art history, and culture. “I was raised in the art world. I remember attending art fairs when I was a kid, going to art shows and having artists at home. I didn’t understand at that young age how important it was for me to be part of all of that. Visiting artist studios and having the chance to spend time with artists from all over the world from a young age has being the best learning experience, even though at that time I didn’t give the importance that it has now. When I was 6 my parents gave me an Andy Warhol book with his early works. I was fascinated by it. And this is the life I always understood as “normal”. I’m self-taught and I started this journey of being a painter when I turned 21 years old. Even though I’ve been painting all my life, I decided to take my artistic career seriously 7 years ago.”

“I was raised in the art world.”

Adriana is, however, a strong believer that talent and passion are only the building blocks for creation, and uses hours and hours of dedication in her LA studio to forge her refined paintings. “Painting started as a passion and it tuned into an obsession. I spend most of the day in the studio. My creative process is based on working every day, 7 hours a day. Picasso once said, 'Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.' I could not agree more.”

“My creative process is based on working every day, 7 hours a day.”

 

A sense of Adriana’s knowledge of art history is prominent in her paintings, which are acrylic on wood and canvas panel. She explains that to her, all pieces of art are “a chain of art history”. This grounding from the masters of the art world is palpable in her work, allowing Adriana to boast a level of confidence and prowess, cloaked by her wealth of knowledge for the subject. Adriana’s work accelerates beyond the work of artists like Andy Warhol and Julian Opie, offering new perspectives and in particular bringing a feminine voice to the pop-art genre. “Women have always played a very minority role in the history of art. I think the female voice brings another contribution on the scene and therefore it is a wealth.”

 

“I think the female voice brings another contribution on the scene and therefore

it is a wealth.”

 

Adriana’s refined skill is not going without notice, as well as gaining an ever-growing following for her unique style of work, she has exhibited paintings in Spain, Italy, London, Swizerland and Los Angeles. “Feeling a positive response to my work is an amazing feeling. It is always difficult to expose the works you have done in view for the audience. There is an intimate part of you exposed and it is a feeling of vulnerability. In the whole process you always have a greater attachment to certain pieces, but in the end, I am always happy to know that the works will find a home.” Her success has allowed her further opportunities, such as expanding her studio space, and giving her the luxury of focusing on her work exclusively, going into the future. “My plans in the future are to keep working and make much bigger works. I’ve got a much bigger studio now and I’m able to create in a much more comfortable way. I’m working for my solo show in Montreal, Canada with the Duran Mashaal Gallery on June 9th and then another solo exhibit at the end of the year in Sao Paulo, Brazil with Galerie Houssein Jarouche, and between that attending different Art Fairs, and working on other projects and commissions.”

 

Adriana also has work available for purchase at Moosey Art now.

 

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