A solo exhibition by Redd Walitzki
July 15th - August 12th Corey Helford Gallery, Los Angeles
Stranger Than Earth is a requiem to an Earth transformed by climate change; there is no going back to the world we used to know, but perhaps we can create a new world full of alien beauty. In these delicate lasercut mixed media paintings, Redd combines the romanticism of high-fashion with a science fiction edge. The explorers depicted in these paintings are a reflection of the lands they inhabit, both unknowable and also entering into unknown spaces. Clad in haute couture gowns fashioned from man-made materials like plastic and cellophane, they are both symbiotic with and alienated from their environment. Atoms are dancing, hearts are breaking, and we dissolve into endless fields of flowers.
Each piece in this series contained an epic journey in its creation. Redd traveled to locations awe-inspiring in their natural wonder, but also reshaped by humans, to capture the initial reference imagery. The resulting paintings depict the balance of a world which is transforming while it also transforms us. The emotional arc of this body of work also mirrors this transformation in a very personal way. Redd began the series with a sense of hope and optimism, but at the end of 2016 her personal life fell apart, just as the outside world was in a state of turmoil and upheaval. She battled through hopelessness to grasp a new sense of adventure and beauty; re-centering in her art, pushing through boundaries, and micro-dosing, which all led to an internal transformation reflected in the overall arc and scale of these pieces.
To capture the photo-references for these pieces, Redd traveled to Iceland, spent several days in the Skagit Valley Tulips, hiked through a blizzard to a frozen waterfall in Western Washington, and explored the outer frontiers of the creative mind. All of the models and photographers involved in this series are long-term collaborators in Redd's process, and creative powerhouses of their own. The level of trust and intimacy of these collaborations meant Redd could take on more challenging outdoor photoshoots, as well as rising to the challenges of personal and artistic transformation.
These strong relationships with other female creative visionaries add depth to
the portrayal of the empowered female characters Redd envisions, both
within the paintings and within herself. By merging hard reflective
surfaces (mirror faces, orbs, and reflective garments) with elements of
Haute Couture Fashion and natural landscapes, she brings this feminist
approach to a mix of sci-fi and environmental topics.