Angela Beloian Gorgeous Grotesque

“In a culture that celebrates youth and artificial perfection my work strives to find beauty and compassion in the distortion of the female figure. Through pulling and warping the body I look below the surface to find what makes us human.

Humor is an important factor in my work. Through humor we discover compassion for our flaws and our weaknesses as human beings.

The figures emerge from the surfaces on which they are painted. Sometimes I begin with a wood panel, studying the grain lines, knots and imperfections on its surface as I allow my mind to imagine a face or body within the natural parameters dictated by the wood’s irregularities.

I am constantly amazed by subconscious influences emerging from the work. It confirms for me a strong belief that we are greatly influenced by our surroundings. I find interesting our individual ideas of who we think we are and how we define and limit ourselves with these often self-imposed ideas of identity.

Through my work I am interested in celebrating that which makes us unique but more importantly ties us together in the web of humanity.”