olivia elaine lorber

I am a Milwaukee based artist creating figurative and environmental paintings that draw upon neoclassical and surrealistic influences. Using a representational style with uncanny distortion in my self-portraiture, I aim to break down the borders between the self and the external. Using a combination of acrylic and oil paints, I explore how the textures and colors of natural forms compare and contrast to my body and thoughts. This exploration is visualized through a myriad of manufactured objects like shipwrecks, corsets, and fabrics harmoniously intertwined with organic forms such as pearls, kelp, shark teeth, and flowers. The figures in my work bear witness to human constructs being reclaimed by nature. Whether that be a sinking ship, or a racing mind coming back down to Earth. 

I have found that for every human emotion there is a natural equivalent. I feel my anxiety in thunderstorms and my bravery in the poison of beautiful flowers. By drawing these connections, I develop allegorical scenes where my figures become characters, observers whose eyes were opened to the whimsy around them. We are often taught to question our worthiness, as if one must fulfill some larger purpose or occupy a productive role to be granted a place in society. Painting with the intention of recognizing our innate belonging has challenged my perceptions of abnormality, of productivity, and other imposed ideals. As a self-identified neurodivergent artist, my studio practice has become integral in processing my mental hardships. Representing my deepest emotions through symbols like entangled vines or the blooms of deadly nightshade, it proves to me that while potent, they are miniscule.