Amanda Greive

Amanda Greive—Artist Statement

The lives of women often parallel that of the botanical world, specifically flowering plants.  They are both at times resilient, fragile, persistent, and ephemeral.  They can flower in environments thought to be otherwise inhospitable, and at the same time taken for granted, cast aside as unworthy.  An undeniable symbolic resemblance exists between women, or those that identify as such, and plants.  This body of work focuses on the exploration of this relationship and the inherent dichotomies, as well as the push and pull between societal perception of women and their reality.  At its simplest distillation, I find inspiration in hearing the stories my models tell and in researching floral history and symbolism. In accord with this, the paintings thus far created are the product of many of these conversations; and each represents a woman’s struggle with agency over her life.

The primary motivation behind my work is to tease out the nuanced emotions embedded within the human condition and to confront isolation and anxiety born of gender-based stereotypes. I’m also interested in addressing the emotional and societal pressure to conform to a certain ideal that women face.  The floral element of each painting symbolically draws attention to femininity as a source of possible societal, emotional and personal conflict for the figures portrayed. It also takes into consideration the symbolic duality of flowers as fragile, beautiful and sexual but also strong, persistent and adaptable. Too, each work is painted photorealistically, so instinctively there is an emphasis on technique. I look to comment on the contradiction between creating realistic imagery and portraying emotional rawness, as well as the uncompromised truth in the imagery portrayed versus its symbolic ambiguity.

Through my artwork, I’ve attempted to explore human interaction on an intensely individual level primarily through the creation of figural scenes that include floral elements that are both personally and historically symbolic.  At the same time, it is my intention to reconcile these personal thoughts and reactions, either directly or indirectly, with the universality of the human condition and the internal and external conflict associated with perceived gender roles. This duality of characteristics manifests in what I hope is a powerful juxtaposition and thought-provoking imagery.