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Artist Statement
I start each piece with desire—an intention—and it’s often unclear until my canvas is already smothered with paint, chalk, and charcoal. I’ll sift through old children’s books, newspapers, and catalogs, tearing out anything that causes my mind to wander. I’ll pin these scraps to the bulletin board in my studio to pair with the already-hung oil pastel and pencil sketches, which have overlooked my process, reaching out to touch me with their shadows, colors, and complexities. This is around the time where I get lost. It’s like I’ve been hypnotized by the goal of production, of creation. The images, words, and themes, which dance around my head, race out of me before I can criticize them. They simultaneously consume me and my canvas. Then one day, I’ll stand up and look back at the piece, and I’ll feel. I don’t care how I feel, it’s different every time, but I’ll know it’s done when I feel something. I aim to leave my audience with the same sense of wonder, confusion, and fascination that my work grants me, its own
creator. I’ll sign my work with my signature ghost icon, and I’ll temporarily step away from my studio space, now a battlefield of chaos. You’d think from this disorderly scene that my creation caused destruction, but to me, this is beauty. This mess is part of the art. I walk away with oil paint stuck to my hands and face. I’ll leave paint smudges on my sweaters and fingerprints on my AirPods, tagging myself as the artist. These stains are part of the story. The piece never leaves me once I walk away from it. I hope it stains you in some way or another as well.
Bio
Ava Bialow is a 19-year-old girl from Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. As a freshman at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, she is currently undecided on a major, but is minoring in Art Theory and Practice, determined to keep her passion alive.
Since she was a child, Ava has always been guided by curiosity and imagination. Attending Beaver Country Day School from 6th-12th grade, she first studied art during her freshman year of high school, initially fascinated by the medium of collage and themes of dreams and nostalgia. After thorough exploration of many different mediums, Ava became especially drawn to combining collage with drawing and painting to create odd and eerie portraits which engage and entice her audience. When she’s not experimenting in her studio, she’s probably listening to music or baking sweet treats for friends.
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