26 september 2023, Manuela Klerkx
Gina Beavers: Van Gogh Sunflowers on my lips
Born into a diplomatic family that traveled extensively around the world, Gina Beavers (Athens, 1974) quickly learned how different cultures and languages influence one's thinking and emotions. Although she spent half her childhood in the United States and pursued her art education in Chicago, it was not easy for her to feel like a typical "American" immersed in American culture. Hence, her penchant for subjects such as consumption and 'foodporn,' internet and social media, makeup, and body parts (especially mouths, eyes, hands, and breasts), which, while universal themes, are often associated with American popular culture. She describes her paintings as 'one-liners' due to the direct impact they have, similar to advertisements or the headlines of an article. Her inspiration comes from the countless images she encounters on the internet and through social media, which she translates into paintings in an extremely physical, 3D manner. The exuberant, brightly colored, in-your-face aesthetics - with grotesque accents - evoke feelings of attraction and repulsion.
Manuela Klerkx interviewed Gina regarding her first solo exhibition, 'Florid,' at rodolphe janssen, which opened on September 7 and runs until October 14.
The exhibition is titled 'Florid,' could you explain what this title is based on?
The word 'florid' refers to something that is 'over the top' in the sense of being excessively ornamental or overly flowery but also in the sense of being flushed, for example, due to a specific physical condition or embarrassment. It can also relate to a rich and elaborate use of language with many figures of speech and metaphors. I find it interesting to explore where the line between 'beautiful' and 'florid' lies, between beautiful and too beautiful, or even kitsch.
Gina Beavers, Painting Van Gogh Sunflowers on my Lips, 2023, rodolphe janssen
How would you describe your art?
The paintings represent a body, a self that is acting out the many states we inhabit when we’re online, showing off, anxiety, shamelessness. They do this both in their expressions as well as their extravagant, sensual presence as reliefs. I’m also very influenced by creative trends online such as make-up or nail tutorials and often those will incorporate popular refrences such as movie characters or famous works of Art. Vincent Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night’ is a popular motif. Using historical Artisitic refrences this way and painting them on my lips reflects a bridging of the high and low creative worlds as well as seeking to reconcile my role as a painter with my reality as an online participant.
Where does your fascination with makeup and nail art in your paintings come from?
I like how when I turned a make-up tutorial into a painting, it gave the effect of the painting trying to paint itself. It’s making itself, it’s teaching you how and it’s also reflecting a sense of self-determination and self-optimization, the idea of always improving, which is another theme of online life. There is also humor in the tutorial format, in its abstraction and extreme close-up of the lips or nails. Finally there is the celebration of femininity.
Gina Beavers, Klimt flowers on my lips, 2023, rodolphe janssen
You mentioned being very aware of being a female artist. What do you mean by that?
I don’t know if I’m very aware of being a female Artist, but I feel the works read as feminine. They incorporate elements of make-up and beauty culture. It’s important to me that this element of focusing on how you appear is there, to reflect the self-conciousness that is always present when you exist as a woman in the world. Whether you are a painter or a scientist, being a woman means being perceived.
I read that you initially wanted to be a medical doctor, then an anthropologist, that you worked as a teacher and finally choose to be an artist. Is that correct?
Yes, I mean I knew when I was 20 that I wanted to be an Artist, but I had started University in medicine and finished with degrees in Art and Anthropology. The Art teaching came as a part of supporting myself while pursuing making Art in the studio. My Anthropology studies have a lot to do with the way I look at culture, whether it’s the online world, or other kinds of creative communities, and come to learn more about myself in the process. My work is autobiographical but filtered through the lense of subcultures.
Gina Beavers, Painting Georgia O’Keefe’s Flower on my lips, 2023, rodolphe janssen
Your paintings are almost sculptural, made in 3D. What led to the choice of heavily painted, highly physical canvases?
I have a deep appreciation for American folk art, also known as 'Americana,' which reflects the traditions, folklore, artifacts, and culture of the United States. Traditional craftsmanship, such as woodcarving and ceramics, plays a significant role in this genre. I try to make the surface of my paintings very artisanal as well. The image sometimes suggests a scene from an animation due to the shadow created by the 3D surface. My work is also about the texture of the paint; I love it when the paint is so thick that you almost want to eat it off the canvas. In this way, my paintings have the potential to seduce and repulse.
Beauty is another recurring theme in your work. What does beauty mean to you in regards to your art?
Beauty is, of course, highly subjective and subject to change. I enjoy playing with the concept of beauty on the border between art and kitsch. To be an American Artist faced with the long, revered history of European Art and culture means feeling sometimes a little inadequate so I find myself taking a strange pride in kitsch. An Anthropologist would say ‘All cuture is good culture’ and kitsch is our culture. It represents the best of us in it’s wierdness and freedom and the worst of us, think: Donald Trump’s apartment; an expensive, yet too cheap copy of European originals.
Gina Beavers, Delft AI Nails, 2023, rodolphe janssen
Do you consider yourself a feminist?
Of course! Women’s rights are human rights as Hilary Clinton said.
In terms of conversations around beauty and representation, I believe ultimately in the non-binary, that women should be able to express how they exist in the world however they want. Whether that’s overtly feminine, not at all or whatever their own combination of gendered identifiers is, that’s the only path to true liberation.
How do you envision your future as an artist?
I want to experiment more with different materials. So far, I've primarily worked with acrylics, paper pulp, and foam on linen on panels. This is the first time since school that I've worked with oil paint. I find myself increasingly looking at artwork from the 1950s and 1960s, particularly artists like Jay DeFeo and Louise Nevelson. I'm also paying more attention to the physical aspects of a work of art and looking at furniture and consumer objects that are being advertised in my feed. Actual ads on social media are ever-increasing, so I’m sure that element will make it into my work at some point.
