Today we’d like to introduce you to Alyssa Willgruber.
Alyssa, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
Recently I have graduated from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, PA with a Bachelor’s degree in Interdisciplinary Fine Art. I primarily consider myself to be a painter but have a passion for drawing as well. In the past few years I have developed a fascination with experimentation, not only in the materials I choose to use but, in the images, I create as well.
I view my work as a play between abstraction and representation presently revolving around the idea of the psychological portrait. I represent human faces through the process of manipulation and transmutation in order to alter peoples’ perceptions of what a face is “supposed” to look like. By utilizing the face as a carrier of marks, whether it be paint or pencil, I attempt to communicate emotion through those marks.
We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
Psychology has a large influence on the contextualization of my artwork, more specifically abnormal psychology. Through the formal, expressive, and material qualities of drawing, I filter, repurpose, and reinterpret found images of faces. With distortion and abstraction, I aim to create a relationship between the conventional qualities of drawing and the emotions they can express. The feeling I want each piece to elicit determines which materials and techniques I choose to apply.
In the process of making my drawings I act as a filter of images, experimenting with works from art history, contemporary artists, and my own earlier drawings and paintings. I alter and transform them into something new, a conceptually driven piece with an intentionality that moves beyond the original source. Whether it be in the odd positioning of a head, the handling of a surface they are on, or in the isolation of facial distortions, the images I select all employ a certain mood that leaves an immense impact on me as the artist. It is important for me to keep in mind from where my images originate, but it is not important for the viewer. The viewer only sees what I bring into the world, my own creation.
What do you know now that you wished you had learned earlier?
If there is one lesson I wish I had learned earlier it would be to not be afraid of failure. As we grow and mature in our lives we come to not only learn more about ourselves as people, but also what we are passionate about. As someone who chose to pursue art as a career path it can be very scary and intimidating. But at the same time it is very exciting because I get to choose how I want to define my version of success.
I feel there is no single way to define success because every individual is different. As an artist, it is difficult to determine what success is because there are so many paths you can take in the art world. In my opinion, as long as you stay true to yourself and the goals you want to achieve that is the most important thing. Comparing yourself to those around you whether it be based on your artwork, the number of exhibitions you’ve had, or the number in your bank account will not only get you nowhere in life, but will leave you incredibly dissatisfied.
One of my favorite quotes on success was written by painter Georgia O’Keeffe. It has not only inspired me as an artist but in my everyday life. “Whether you succeed or not is irrelevant, there is no such thing. Making your unknown known is the important thing.”
Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
Anyone who would like to see more of my work can go to my website at www.alyssawillgruber.com. And you can also follow me on Instagram where I regularly post new photos of pieces or projects I am working on www.instagram.com/alyssawillgruber/.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.alyssawillgruber.com
- Email: alyssawillgruber@gmail.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/alyssawillgruber/
Image Credit:
All of the uploaded images were photographed by me
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