When you think of body painting an air of nostalgia comes around and you start to remember those moments during your childhood where you went to an amusement park and got a butterfly or tiger painted on your face. This however, is not at all what body painting is today. Think whole figures camouflaged into wallpaper or landscapes and still lifes being recreated in 3-D. Check out three artists today are redefining the art of body painting.
Alexa Meade
Alexa Meade is turning 3-D into 2-D. The D.C native artist majored in political science at Vassar College, but the art world has a way of dragging you in. Meade graduated but took her future into her own hands, literally. She takes body painting to a whole other level.
As a painter, she creates the illusion of a 2-D painting in a 3-D world and travels around the globe creating installations and commissioned portraits. The living and moving still lifes Meade creates are electric and shocking. We have to say she is a shining star, with exhibitions in Switzerland, France, Japan and Spain.
Nicolette Spear
Nicolette Spear believes every subject calls for individual treatment, and she’s right. This visual artist works off of the concept of the human condition and the collective unconscious of all human kind which is evident in her work. Her canvas goes from human bodies to wood and paper, creating work that moves from surrealism to psychedelic imagery.
Spear likes to experiment with techniques in her work which is influenced by line, geometry, and texture. With solo shows in Los Angeles, Spears is making her rounds so be on the look out for her work.
Emma Hack
Emma Hack, the Australian visual artist, is a connoisseur when it comes to camouflage. Working with body painting and photography, Hack makes her figures disappear. Her most famous series, Wallpaper (2005-2013) is a floral fantasy; she draws inspiration from the Australian flora and fauna and paints her models into stunning wallpaper patterns.
Hack has collaborated with Grammy-winning musician Gotye, providing art work for a music video and has now opened her a gallery and studio. Whimsical and visually intriguing, Hack has a true talent for giving the body a deceptive role within her works.
