MFA (Master of Fine Arts), artist Strömberg Astrid

30000 €

Independent artistic work such as studio based practice related to painting

Taiteellinen työ / siihen pohjautuva työ | Yksivuotinen

I work within the field of painting with focus on fragments of figurations that I use to form narratives. Currently I am keen on exploring different ways to treat pictures, especially images derived or connected to digital popular culture in relation to images telling stories about myths and stories related to female figures. I am also interested in combining figurations that are more arcane with narrative ones. I tend to simplify, crop, zoom in and seek for flatness in my paintings/installations, like a cartoon’s flat aesthetics and playing with the naive and banal without compromising on the seriousness that is also present in my works. What interests me is the mixture of emotions, images, environments, both physical and non-physical (internet) that are woven together into an associative play, a swirl of information. One specific project I will carry out during a working grant period goes by the working title Ferine and deals with thoughts on the constructed female persona. I am especially interested in imageries connected to the female persona/body perceived in online popular culture on social media. I am intrigued about using stereotypical visuals that (may) refer to the female body and character but by twisting the narrative of the picture through my paintings so that their are read as something murkier than just the first indication of perfection and bliss. By using the allure of the first shimmery surface and to let it mutate into something that also contains connections to weird, dark and uncomfortable feelings. Feelings touching upon fears, longings, sadness, anger, obnoxious and humour in a versatile and odd way that I think can evoke questions or affiliate around current issues and phenomenas regarding body and presence. Synonyms for name Ferine are for instance feral, vile, savage. For me the word in this context refers to perception and possibilities to defence or aggression.