Raquel Fuentes is a Venezuelan born, mostly self-taught abstract artist. Since she was young, she had a love for all that was artistic, and now she is a featured artist of our July’s Kaleidoscope Exhibition. Let’s get to know more about Raquel Fuentes and her artwork!
Read MoreTanmay Parashar is a Toronto based self-taught contemporary artist, who is passionately in love with colours. His venture into the joys of merging colours with canvas began recently, in July 2018.
Read MoreRobert Saffer is an abstract contemporary symbolist artist. He works with all visual mediums. His stark, textured aesthetic has a fierce expressive power with a sense of movement and menace. As a symbolist, he aims to express moods and emotions rather than the world around him.
Read MoreWendy Teasdale is a participant in the Kaleidoscope exhibit. Her paintings are intricate and eye-catching, we love her work. We asked her a couple of questions about her style and processes which you can read below!
Read MoreCourtney Senior is one of Twist Gallery’s featured artists this month for the Kaleidoscope Exhibit. We have all heard about Art Therapy and how it can be used as a means of self-expression and a way to cope with stress, but does it work?
Read MoreThis month, Twist Gallery’s Kaleidoscope exhibit features David Brown, an artist who uses the encaustic method for his paintings. David shared images of his work and studio, and taught us all about the encaustic method.
Read MoreI think we can all agree, everyone misses being able to travel! Although border restrictions remain tense amidst the pandemic, Crossing Boundaries, may remedy everyone’s desire for exploration and travel.
Read MoreIf we reflect back upon our younger years, we can likely pinpoint the exact first memory off what we believed our ‘perfect wedding’ was going to entail.
Read MoreAre you ready to explore the depths of water and earth by diving into the newest exhibit curated by us, at Twist Gallery?
Read MoreSandra Di Leo was born in Wawa, Ontario and moved to Toronto in 1997. She graduated from George Brown College in 2000 in Graphic Design.
Read MoreOne of our artists from the Kaleidoscope exhibit is Sarah Rutledge from Ontario, Canada. She has grown up always inspiring to be an artist. Once she started experimenting with abstract art, she had realized that she found her true passion.
Read MoreRobert Saffer is an abstract contemporary symbolist artist. He works with all visual mediums. His stark, textured aesthetic has a fierce expressive power with a sense of movement and menace. As a symbolist, he aims to express moods and emotions rather than the world around him.
Read MoreRaquel Fuentes is a Venezuelan born, mostly self-taught abstract artist based in Vaughan, Ontario. Since she was young, she had a love for all that was artistic. After her family moved to Canada from Venezuela, she enrolled at a local college and did one year in a general design program.
Read MoreIn his latest series of paintings David explores the limits of the encaustic medium while balancing non-representational image and abstract space.
Read MoreInspired by a deep appreciation for nature, Wendy Teasdale’s artwork is vibrant in colour and rhythmic in pattern and texture. Wendy paints from a place of spontaneity, creating intuitively by layering colourful inks and high flow acrylics.
Read MoreAn overview and introduction of our artists!
Read MoreIt’s been a fabulous decade here at Twist Gallery and we’d love nothing more than to share with all of you how we started and got to where we are now.
Read MoreWe are honoured that Patrizia Di Franco wrote a fantastic article for EventSource about “The Third Annual Wedding Open House at Twist Gallery”!
Read More“I want my work to express and explore the whole spectrum and range of what it is to feel and live as a human being. I believe our vulnerability connects us and it is through our connection as humans that we are able to have connections with art.”
“Extracting the Abstract” artist Amanda Wand
How did you start out as an artist?
I created my first abstract piece when I was 16 years old, I painted a heart split in the middle, one side was aflame and the other side was a question mark. I immediately knew that what I created was my most honest truth - truer than any words I could ever write. I was liberated and from there I became enthralled with using art as a form of therapy and self-expression.
How did you get into creating abstract artwork? What does abstract mean to you?
I’ve always been an abstract artist. I have tried many different styles of creation – photography, printmaking, drawing, still life painting, etc when I was in school, however, I always gravitated back to abstract in my spare time. I love the release and freedom in it. It is the only time when my overactive brain shuts down and falls into a flow. I found when doing representational art I was more anxious than at ease, my perfectionism kicks in so I always found myself going to abstract art as a way to relax. Creating abstract work is a journey of self-expression and self-discovery at the same time for me. What a freeing way to release and return to me a million times over. It is total self-expression, freedom, embracing the present without a plan. It opens up the creator and viewer to multiple perspectives and endless ways to interpret one piece. It makes me feel. I love the way abstract work hits my heart when creating and viewing it myself. Abstract is an invitation of inclusion for me, it allows me as an artist to own my vulnerability and channel it into something others connect with and find a piece of their story within my work.
“The Rise of Feminine Moon” by Amanda Wand
How do you describe your relationship with art? What does art mean to you?
I love making art! I am an abstract intuitive artist that believes in the power of process through creation. I use art as a way to navigate the complex emotions of our world with the intention to invite others to process their own emotions. Art is my therapy, it is my release, my meditation. I feel a calling to create art from a deep personal intuition in order to help me make sense of my emotions and my positionality in the world. The process of making art is where I find the magic, in allowing myself to be completely present and enchanted with each movement and colour. It is a deep process of gratitude. Even in moments when I am releasing anger or sadness, there is still a gratitude for the release and the joy of using the materials. Art means expression, truth, therapy, it is multiple truths all at once and welcomes different perspectives all at the same time.
Walk us through your journey of creating an art piece.
My work is not predetermined and I allow my intuition to guide me through the evolution of the piece. These works come from my heart which is constantly affected by societal influences and how I perceive the world is perceiving me which means the beginning state of every piece is varied in a wide range of emotions. This is why I rarely plan my pieces and instead allow my flow and intuition to guide me into creation. I will start by ensuring the space in my studio feels good, make sure the energy is what I need for the moment which could involve cleaning up, pulling an oracle card or getting in a meditative like state. I put on inspiring podcasts or music. Look at the blank canvas for a few moments and then apply either water or paint directly to the canvas, I like to use the canvas as a way to mix the paint. From there I allow myself to be in flow and choose colours and techniques by what feels good in the moment. I can get lost in this process for hours. I will eventually step back and stare at my creation for a while. I will go back in as needed to apply more colour or if it just doesn’t feel quite finished. Then I will stare at it while it dries to figure out what is the lesson, what am I supposed to know here, what is really going on with me. This naturally leads to a poetic title, that only I know the true meaning, but still invites people to participate and add their own story in it as well.
“Sparked Her Heart” by Amanda Wand
“I enjoy creating abstract art because I had the opportunity to explore a new way of expression and could use so many different skills and techniques to create texture”
“Extracting the Abstract” artist Aml Sultana
What inspires you?
I am inspired by everything ranging from people, my past experiences, and especially music. Even though there are so many different people in my life, they each serve an important purpose in life and help me grow. After deciding to seriously pursue art, I realized that everybody expresses themselves through a form of art, whether they realize it or not. I am a strong believer in experiences telling the tale of your life, so my paintings are created in a way to tell stories from my past experiences. Music is an important aspect of my life so it is attached to every piece of work I have created. When looking at my past work, I can recall what music I was listening to which also reminds me of how I was feeling at that moment. Lana Del Rey, who I discovered in the 9th grade, has been the most impactful artist for me and she is a part of almost every piece of art that I have created since high school.
“Plated Guilt” by Aml Sultana
Why are you drawn to this subject?
Before creating this collection and being introduced to abstract art, I had the wrong perception that art had to be “clean” and “perfect. I used to believe that realistic paintings were the basis of creative art and that every line and detail had to be perfect. My first submission piece for this exhibit was out of my comfort zone because there was no plan and it was all emotion, which is what my past work was about. I enjoy creating abstract art because I had the opportunity to explore a new way of expression and could use so many different skills and techniques to create texture. Abstract art unlocked a different artistic skill that I did not know that I had and I will definitely will be exercising it in the future.
What is your collection about?
My collection focuses on my favourite pieces of work that I have created so far. I was finally able to step out of my comfort zone during the creative process, as I used different materials and an even bigger canvas. This collection tells my story of this past summer and all of the amazing opportunities that I had. I was able to discover new skills, such as murals, and experienced a new feeling of motivation and confidence towards my creative artwork. I am excited to be a part of an exhibition in a gallery that I have admired for a long time. It’s about being sure that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life.
“Auriferous” by Aml Sultana
