Interview by Jimon

1-Where do you reside and work currently?  I am currently living and working in New York.

2-How long have you been making art and what lead you to start?  I was interested in visual arts since early childhood but became serious about it around the age of twelve. That’s when I started taking classes with an art teacher.

3-Did you study art or is it inherent?  I think I have an inherent passion but I have worked hard on developing my skills and have done most of my education in the arts. I actually got my MFA this past spring.

4-How would you describe Liza Sokolovskaya?  Slightly anxious, slightly weird but very much aiming to be authentic and funny.

5-Do you remember the first piece of art that captured your imagination?  I was incredibly lucky to grow up in a house with art books. I remember passages of paintings I saw in those huge volumes. Beautiful transparent vessels of Dutch still lives, silk dresses on French ladies, bright colors of the Fauves. It’s hard for me to name one, but I was very impressed by Dali. I was both repulsed and attracted to many of his works as a teenager.

6-Is there any reality behind the characters in your paintings or are they purely fantasy?  My pieces often start with a photograph, but end up moving away from those references pretty quickly. The photograph gives me a framework to start and then my imagination takes over. It’s also a lot about letting the medium I work with shine. I like for the paint move and create some unexpected effects that I can respond to.

7-What do you dream about?  A big studio with a printmaking press, a loom, a ton of acrylic paints I can drip, stretched canvases and an assistant to clean up the mess.

8-How do you define success?  Living from your art, being recognized by your peers and pushing yourself to experiment.

9-Best advice you ever received in regards to your career as an artist?  If you are going to be working even slightly figuratively, paint and draw from life. Those skills will make you better in general.

10-What advice would you give putative collectors?  I had the chance to hear Sherry and Joel Mallin talk about their extensive collection and you could hear in their voices the love they had for each piece. They picked their pieces slowly and carefully, without listening to critics or follow trends. Invest in what strikes you.

11-How would you like to be seen as an artist years from now?  An artist that evolved and changed. An artist that loved materials. An artist that helped other artists and created a community.

12-Do you have a place/person/thing that you visit for inspiration?  I am inspired by evening walks in my neighborhood. I love how all the details are erased by the night, and how lights from street lamps, porches and windows illuminate a tiny piece of the world around them.

13-If you could have dinner with 3 artists living/dead who would be at your table?  Rothko, Freud and Catherine Kehoe.

14-Name three things you can’t live without in your studio?  Many clean brushes, tea and podcasts.

15-How would someone find you on social media?  @liza.sokolovskaya
www.liza-sokolovskaya.com