Using the Human Form as a Canvas

I chose a very intriguing artist named Alexa Meade. She is an American artist born in Washington and raised in Maryland. She attended Vassar College intending to go into politics. Her route changed in 2009 when she decided to teach herself to paint and developed a very unique style. She makes human beings and other objects appear to be a painting by painting directly onto her subjects and almost getting rid of the depth in order to make the people seem 2-D. The work combines acrylic painting, photography, and performance art. She uses acrylic paint in her paintings to create this optical illusion by only keeping the eyes and hair unpainted. She has been recognized on CNN, given speeches, and had her art displayed in art exhibits.

I was inspired by this art because first of all, I would have probably never thought of this. I have a hard time thinking of abstract creative ideas and this is just a really awesome way to utilize your art skills. It makes me want to try this same technique and also explore other ways to use my skills in interesting and new ways. I hope to achieve this level of creativity in my artistic ability one day.

I think that Alexa Meade would be a great example for young artists and art classes everywhere. I think this because especially for AP students, we are encouraged to use different materials in different ways to show our creativity (this is the whole focus of the Breadth portion of AP Studio Art). I think it would challenge students to think outside the box, similar to how the artist Swoon made me feel. I think seeing a physical person using different tactics and still being a successful artist is a good teaching method for art students. Alexa Meade was very inspiring for me and I think she would be great for other young artists.

These are some of my favorite pieces of hers:

Hannah is a senior this year in my AP Studio Art class. Here are a few examples of her work: