Tell us about who you are and what you do.
My name is Alex Panessa, and I'm a mixed-media artist, my working riding between fabric dyeing and printmaking. I grew up on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, and went to college on the coast of Massachusetts, where I obtained a degree in printmaking. I moved down to Asheville, North Carolina after graduating, and have been enjoying the mountains since. My work involves developing ephemera through various applications of color and composition. I am interested in the manipulation and deterioration of material, and diverge into the idea of what can be picturesque. Human response is something that fuels my will to create, and as we are attracted to objects for a specific reason, I take away from the action of sharing a unique expression with another individual, and what they can benefit from that.
When did you start getting into making art?
I recall drawing characters when I was around eight or so, selling my creations on the school bus for a quarter. I had always been interested in the idea of making, but felt restricted when it came to subject matter: a pressure to depict. With that, I took a swing at learning to play music. Eventually, I picked up darkroom photography in high school, and progressed into attending a fine art university, where I found printmaking, and abstraction; once I had gotten into monotype, all bets were off.
What's your favorite part about being creative?
I am thankful for the vision that I have, in seeing the world in the way that I do - I see creativity as a tool that can stimulate and inspire; as an artist, I find important to spread the appreciation of minute details that go unnoticed, and to produce when I am able to, given permitted circumstance. I can say that as my work is process-intensive, the outcome of something that I work on varies due to experimentation, but I take away what I can in the moment, if all else crumbles.
What's one of your favorite pieces you've done?
I took a lithography course during college that shifted my body of work toward a thesis structure, relating to interpreting memory through color field. There were two monochromatic prints from that semester that serve as a milestone to me: not necessarily because of their imagery, but for their iteration of what I interpret as a deep-rooted, pinnacle memory in my childhood. Aside from those two, I have a few pieces that I favor over most others, but I find that my taste changes over time.
Who/what are some of your biggest inspirations?
Robert Rauschenberg is an artist whose body of work, from assemblages to his feats in lithography, the textures he manipulated, and with the materials that he utilized, inspire me to create in the field of obscurity. I had always pulled inspiration from the surrealist movement prior to receiving an education, René Magritte had always stuck in the crevices of my brain. I recall the first time I had been inspired in a gallery setting, seeing a Keith Haring retrospective in New York: those tongue-in-cheek messages, the rudimentary linework calling toward inner-child. Formless: A User's Guide, written by Yve-Alain Bois and Rosalind Krauss, is an astounding collection of essays and ideals that involve Georges Bataille's notion of the informe, and the detachment of materialism, forming an essential guidebook to liberation from image. I had taken a course called Theories of Art that destroyed the way I had perceived criticism in relation to the creative world, and why certain pieces are learned in Art History; the teacher recommended Formless to me, and it sparked a flame that has driven me to this day. I recommend to each abstract artist: find a copy of this!
What's some advice you'd give to fellow artists?
Free yourself from the notion of needing to depict for the sake of reason, and embrace the primal energy at hand. Whether what you've put energy into has proved fruitful or not, the act of creating is better than nothing at all; if you don't utilize the creative drive that you have, the idea can get lost in translation. Support other creatives, whether that be representing their work, or commenting on a social media post. We're all trying to get there, and exposure can fuel the fire! Research the artists that worked in the medium that you create, and who they learned from - look at your materials, and what they mean.
How is your personality reflected in your work?
A great portion of my work is site-specific in regard to color, correlating with past memory to be depicted into abstraction, and while that isn't necessarily evident from a viewer's perspective, each two-dimensional work I create has something that I have pulled from the cavities of my brain. I've been told in the past that one wouldn't necessarily expect me to produce the work that I do, judged by my personality; I think that that is something to further explore. I attempt to detach from implementing past experiences in my fabric-based work, but there can be a bit of slippage.
Music you've been listening to lately?
I have been into First State Aggression by Year of the Knife and Only Self by Jesus Piece - both are solid releases from two heavy acts that are paving way in an otherwise grunt-driven scene. Mourn by Corbin has been on rotation since it came out back when. I can't get over the power of that album, and I feel that everyone should give it a shot, shining over previous releases under Spooky Black. Good to Feel by Candy is another hardcore album that has been buzzing around my apartment: groovy crossover hardcore that acts like a brick to the head, followed by a rush of adrenaline. I've also been diving into the deeper cuts by Have a Nice Life, namely their Voids compilation.
Favorite place in Asheville to chow down?
Posana has stuck out to me - between their implementation of local ingredients, and their ability to make gluten-free food taste so damn good, I'm sold on it! I enjoy an occasional stop into Dobra to catch a few rinses of pu'er, making me feel like the madman I am.
Anything else you'd like to add?
I urge those reading to do something different. Get out of your comfort zone, and follow the alternate route. Take time to notice the little things, and appreciate what you do have. Also, thank you for the feature!
Follow Alex Panessa on Instagram (@alex.panessa)