My work incorporates my love of gothic painting, Hellenistic frescoes, 1980s design, and minimalist architecture with the observations I collect when painting outdoors. When I take these influences into the studio, abstractions take on the qualities of things–the wings of a gothic angel morph into the hair of a My Little Pony toy. Through memory and fantasy, these phantoms shape my lexicon of visual forms. I like to subvert the contextual clues we use to read paintings, providing new avenues of perception. Cues like horizons, gradients, and shadows imply a semi-plausible space, but the materiality of the paint and the unwieldy nature of color keep me coming back to the surface of the painting.

The titles of my paintings are extractions from ambiguous snippets of speech. I listen to the radio or people's conversations, isolating phrases and separating the words from their original context. The titling process mimics my painting practice as abstractions form from abbreviations, clipped motion, and interrupted horizons. The grays, mauves, and browns I mix are the colors of fleeting natural light. Loops and lines borrow from my handwriting and automatic drawing. This lyrical movement relates to my elemental love of drawing as a generative activity.

Interviews with the Artist

The Conversation Art Podcast, “Episode 365: Brooklyn artist Liz Ainslie: a coveted artist loft, scream-core singing, and artists who stay with their community even after success.” Septembr 14, 2024.
https://theconversationpod.com/epis-365-brooklyn-artist-liz-ainslie-a-coveted-artist-loft-scream-core-singing-and-artists-who-stay-with-the-community-even-after-success/

Keeting, Zachary & Christopher Joy, Gorky’s Granddaughter, June, 2022
http://www.gorkysgranddaughter.com/2022/07/liz-ainslie-june-2022.html

Burns, Emily, Maake, Liz Ainslie, 2020
http://www.maakemagazine.com/liz-ainslie

Calandra, Maria, Pencil in the Studio, “Liz Ainslie” August, 2011 http://pencilinthestudio.blogspot.com/2011/08/liz-anslie.html

Standard Interview, “Liz Ainslie” March, 2011
http://standardinterview.blogspot.com/2011/03/liz-ainslie.html