Featured Photo: Double Mona Lisa | Peanut butter and jelly, 1999 by Vik Muniz

Inspiration can come out of the most mundane moment. The same way they could see a pile of rubbish, peanut butter, a lot of discarded denim, obsolete electronics, and many more overlooked materials and see a masterpiece in the making.   

The following five artists have decided to explore off the beaten path. To carve out their own space in a crowded world –both by many artists but with many more possibilities–  to stand out and create compelling art that begins its existence in the margin but can manage to get centre stage. This article focuses on five artists showcasing their art on the .ART who have push further what their material of choice can be.  

Subversive Material: refers to the usage of the matter from which something is made to use it in contradiction to the established usage with the intention to create art with it in a contemporary manner. 

IAN BERRY  

This billion-dollar industry is the material of choice of Ian Berry, still to all appearances, the viewer can confuse it with a shadeful monochromatic photograph or an oil painting. In reality, it is out of denim jeans that Berry build his vernacular & downhearted urban scenes, layers and layers of various hue, washes, tint of this ultra-common fabric. This artist has pushed his reasoning on his medium of choice, which was first a garment of the rural origin that became a front runner of city living – the meaning of the fabric and its worldwide presence have informed Ian Berry fine art creation.   

Visit his website ianberry.art to discover more about his work and his upcoming international exhibitions or stroll his Instagram feed under @ianberry.art 

DANI BRODSKY  

It is under the pseudonym the Loom Witch that Dani Brodsky, artist and textile designer, is creating her art. She ensorceled threads to weave intricate patterns, to create useful work of art ranging from wall piece, to mirror, to floor art and more. Her works find themselves living at the blurry line between soft sculpture and experimental design. Her materials and technique display her respect for functionality while creating narratives that include objects and depict dreamscapes, being tufted out of textured soft, colourful treads.  

Active on Instagram, her work can be discovered on under @loom.witch as well as on her website  danibrodsky.art – where you will also learn that one of her companions is a cute little rabbit named Beelzebub.

CHRISTIAN MÄHLER  

Recycling and upcycling have been very present in the news and on the lips of many artists – how can we create new objects with discarded materials. Christian Mähler has taken an interest in the idea of upcycling, and it is made with wire that his art, his mosaics are created. The artworks, mostly inspired by masterpieces he saw in books, or studies of shapes and colours, are taking a 2.0 turn and find a contemporary existence that is made of bits of wire which used to convey 0 and 1. From passing within at high speed, the process is slowed back, the information is broken down and reassembles with small pieces, one after the other, in a fluid methodical almost meditative approach.   

To see his art for yourself, and learned more about his process and inspiration, look into his website wire-mosaic.art, you can also reach him on Twitter @maehler.   

JACOB PAIK 

Upon the first glance at Paik’s art – the shapes are known. Still, the brain takes a little bit of time to deconstruct the work and reassemble what it is made of – doors. His art is a rupture with the traditional painting surface, adding a new layer of materiality and geometry. The perception of physical and visual realities is at the forefront of his art that transforms into a response to the quest regarding everyday life and its meaning.  

Visit his website jacobpaik.art to discover more about his art-making and find him under @jacobpaikart on Instagram. 

BRETT SUTHERLAND 

His art takes the form of a collection of portraits, everyday people taking shape by their consumer choices. In his Consume Series, Brett Sutherland is confronting the wasteful and every growing fast fashion industry. Rapidly consume, rapidly discarded, the negative impact both on the human beings and the environment could be overturned if we start a meaningful conversation about how we consume, what do we really need and the impact that our choices have on the global ecosystem. His art put a face – literally, and create something aesthetically pleasing, meaningful that take shape out of something less than pristine.   

His work can be appreciated on Instagram under the handle @brett_joseph or his .ART website brettsutherland.art 

ABOUT THIS SECTION  

The .art Domains has always been dedicated to connect, empower, and support its community members and foster a sense of belonging to the art world. This new section celebrates creators that have recently joined our community. It is our way to give back and shine a light on amazing creatives, especially in these testing times! If you would like to be feature in a post please take a look at our submission guidelines here.