swiss – anja studios

Posted on August 19, 2021August 19, 2021 by anjastudios — Leave a comment

Two weeks until the opening – Healing Power

Two weeks from today my newest exhibition will open. It will be a different experience just like everything else in the past 18 months. There won’t be an opening reception and the exhibition will just be open during regular gallery hours September 2-14. I will be at the gallery Thursday, Friday and Saturday afternoons and the gallery will also be open Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons. Masks are mandatory so it might take me a minute longer to recognize you hahaha

To read more about the exhibition please check out the previous blog entry. Here is a sneak peek of a few of the works included in the exhibition. I hope to see you at the exhibition!

Take care of yourself and make sure to spend time in nature!

trustingly sheltered – embroidery on surgical mask, 11”x4” unframed or 16”x12” framed

joyfully grateful – oil on canvas, 48” x 30”

optimistically serious – watercolour, archival ink and graphite on 140lb Canson watercolour paper, 9”x12” unframed or 16”x20” framed

Posted on April 28, 2018April 28, 2018 by anjastudios — Leave a comment

Opening night moved to May 11, 7-11pm

A couple of days ago the Winnipeg Jets announced the schedule for round 2 of the playoffs against the Predators and game 7 (if needed) will be taking place on May 10. Considering this I have decided to move the opening night of my exhibition to the next day – May 11, 7-11pm.

Go Jets Go and see you on May 11 at cre8ery gallery!

Ciao

Anja

Layers-postcard_11P

Posted on April 8, 2018 by anjastudios — Leave a comment

One month to go

The opening night of my solo exhibition “Layers” is only 1 month away. This week I finished my last painting and most of my sculptures. Lots of things still to do such as the naming of all works, working on an installation and of course promoting the show.

This series of work consists of encaustic paintings, illustrations, and sculptures.

The works within this exhibition are an exploration of human existence and identity. We all have different layers to our personalities, due to the various roles we play in our personal lives, our careers, and the fundamental personality traits we were born with. We put on masks for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment, and some experiences can cause cracks in our layers. Some of our layers are visible and some are hidden, but at the core, we are more alike than different. Over time, we end up becoming complex human beings with many layers. To truly see somebody for who they are, do we chip away at those layers or is this accumulation of layers what truly makes us into who we are – complex and beautiful.

Each of the encaustic painting and hand-painted nesting dolls is a portrait. Each layer of wax within the paintings expresses a different part of the subject’s personality through abstract landscapes, photography, transfers of graphic patterns, and illustrations. The nesting doll sets each consist of 3 dolls and are hand-painted using acrylic paints. Each doll depicts an animal symbolizing a part of the subject’s personality.

The clay sculptures focus on the damage life can cause. Instead of hiding our imperfections we should embrace them and realize that all experiences, good or bad, make us into who we are. This philosophy is underlined through the integration of the centuries-old Japanese art of Kintsugi, through which broken pottery is repaired with 18k gold, showing that if we embrace our history we become more beautiful.

Here is a sneak peek of some of my pieces and a fun promotional video for the show.

The exhibition will be at cre8ery gallery and runs May 10-22. The opening reception will be taking place on May 10 from 7-11pm. After May 10 the gallery hours are Tuesday-Friday noon-6pm and Saturday noon-5pm.

I hope you can all make it to the opening night on Thursday, May 10, 2018, 7-11pm.

See you at cre8ery gallery, 2nd-floor – 125 Adelaide, Winnipeg

Ciao!

Anja

Posted on November 30, 2016November 30, 2016 by anjastudios — 1 Comment

Colouring Book Launch

After my last exhibition so many people told me that my illustrations would lend themselves perfectly to a colouring book. After months of hard work my colouring book “Familiar Friends” is finally ready. It’s been so much fun to see this project come together and I am very proud of the accomplishment to have published my first book.

The illustrations within my colouring book are portraits, exploring the physical nature, personality and character traits of people I have met. To me seeing an animal in a person is just like looking up into the sky and seeing animals form within the clouds. The portraits consist of simple line drawings and geometric patterns inspired by folk art from all over the world, including Swiss Bauernmalerei and paper cuts.

Many of us live stressful and hectic lives and we all find different ways to cope. I am sure you remember colouring as a kid and might think that you are too old to pick up your crayons again. But not so fast! Research has shown that even short times of colouring can reduce your stress levels and increase creativity. So much so that even the corporate world has taken notice and offices have started doing colouring sessions to decrease their employee’s stress levels and at the same time increase their creativity.

Give the gift of relaxation this Christmas! Available for $19.75 (SFR. 19.75) at McNally Robinson (in-store and online – they ship worldwide).

If you are local and want to get your hands on a copy right away pick up your own copy at McNally or email me at anjastudios@shaw.ca and we can arrange delivery.

A special thanks to Kyle for all his support, to Rob for doing an amazing job with the layout of the book, to Lindsay for proof reading and to Emily for creating this beautiful video to help me launch my book! Couldn’t have done this without you!

Ciao

Xoxo

Anja

Posted on March 3, 2015 by anjastudios — Leave a comment

Art exhibition – working around the clock

In case you are wondering what I have been up to over the past 2 years… well where to start. I have had very little time for my art due to my new job as the Senior Project Manager, New Media at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. It’s been inspiring, crazy, tiring and rejuvenating all at the same time. The museum fully opened on November 11 and I switched my attention from opening a museum to getting ready for my exhibition. It’s been a lot of long hours but hey I was already used to that after working at the museum. I have loved being able to get lost in my art again and being able to spend 8 hours at a time in my studio creating and playing.

This new series being exhibited consists of illustrations, screen prints, encaustic paintings and a large format installation. Here is a sneak peek of what I have been working on… More details on the opening night to come in the next few days but please mark your calendars – the opening night is taking place on March 12, 7-11pm at cre8ery gallery in the Exchange.

Ciao!

Anja

Anja Studer Encaustic2 — Encaustic landscapes

Posted on November 25, 2013 by anjastudios — Leave a comment

5th Annual Studio Sale this Sunday

My good friend and fabulous artist Charlene Brown and I are doing a one day studio sale this Sunday. The sale is taking place at clayhaus studio at 1178 McMillan Avenue, 10am to 5pm.

Looking to get some Christmas shopping done? Do you have an eco-fashionista on your list? A piece of my jewelry might be the perfect gift for her. I have a line of silver jewelry that is made from recycled pure silver, beach glass I collected on my travels and recycled fresh water pearls . All pieces are handcrafted and one of a kind.

Or are you looking for a beautiful piece of pottery for someone on your list? To find out more about Char’s amazing pottery check out her website clayhaus.com

Come by the studio and get your Christmas shopping done this Sunday, Dec. 1 – 10am to 5pm! If you can’t make this Sunday and prefer online shopping go to anjastudios.etsy.com

Ciao

Anja

Posted on October 29, 2013 by anjastudios — 1 Comment

Playing with encaustics

A few years back I went to see a talk + demo by the local artist Tim Schouten at the WAG (Winnipeg Art Gallery) with my friend and fellow artist Charlene Brown. We had both seen Tim’s encaustic paintings and were interested in learning more about his work and about encaustic in general. Seeing him work was fascinating and the following summer I made sure to visit his studio (http://www.watchthewave.ca/). I was intrigued and scared by this ancient medium and wanted to try it out so badly. I ordered some pre-made encaustic paints and started exploring. It was a lot of trial and error and a lot of playing with different tools – and playing is the key word here, as it truly feels like playing. I instantly fell in love with this medium. I have taken a workshop and have learned how to make my own encaustic paints from bees wax and damar resin. I don’t have proper ventilation in my studio so I decided to set up my encaustic studio on our deck. Painting outside solved the ventilation issue and I have to say it intensified the sense of playing as it reminded me even more of being a kid playing outside. I started working on my next solo show (March 2015 at cre8ery gallery) exploring the theme of dreams and illusions. 6 of my encaustic pieces will be exhibited at cre8ery gallery Nov. 5 to Dec. 10, 2013. Gallery hours are Tuesday & Thursday 12-8pm, Wednesday & Friday, 12-5pm and Saturday 12-4pm.

Here is a bit more information about encaustic:

The word encaustic comes from Greek and means to “burn in”, which refers to the process of fusing the paint. Encaustic is a paint composed of beeswax, damar resin and pigments. The term “encaustic” is often used to describe both the paint itself, and the method for using it. Encaustic paint is applied molten to an absorbent surface, and then fused, (or re-melted), to create a variety of effects. Unlike other paints, encaustic is never wet or dry – it goes from a liquid to solid state and back again in seconds, which means additional layers can be added immediately, without disrupting your composition. Once the surface has cooled, the paint has reached a permanent finish, but the painting can be revised and reworked with heat at any time – minutes or years later.

Encaustic paint was first used over 5,000 years ago in Greece when it was used wax to seal their ships. Eventually they added pigment to decorate the boats.

The oldest surviving encaustic works are 2000 years old. These are the beautiful and realistic Fayum funeral portraits from Egypt. These were painted in colored waxes on wood and w.ere attached to mummy cases to commemorate the deceased and transport them to the afterlife. The wax has preserved them in near perfect condition.

Encaustic eventually fell out of favor because it was so cumbersome to use. Imagine melting wax paint over a wood fire by candlelight! The medium was replaced by tempera painting, fresco, and eventually oil painting. Still, it was kept alive over the centuries by small groups of dedicated artists. Many Impressionists and Symbolist artists experimented with wax. Some of the artists known to use wax in their paintings include Paul Gauguin and George Seurat.

My motto for this week: Try something new that scares you!

Ciao

Anja

Posted on December 29, 2012December 29, 2012 by anjastudios — 3 Comments

DIY Christmas gifts – T-Shirt quilt

My favorite time of the year (except summer) is the time leading up to Christmas. I love how friendly people are, the beautiful Christmas decoration, Christmas music and I love giving gifts. The process of looking for the perfect gift or even better making the perfect gift for somebody you love. The anticipation of them opening the gift and the happiness and surprise on their face. I often make many of my Christmas gifts for my family and friends and this year was no different. I made Christmas ornaments for my friends (watch for DIY part 2 for instructions), I framed one of my screen prints for K. and the pièce de résistance this year is the quilt I made for him. He is a huge Star Wars fan and has been holding on to his old Star Wars T-Shirts. They have been sitting in a bag in our basement for years and he has refused to get rid of them. Years ago I had seen a quilt made from old T-Shirts and I thought that it would be a perfect way to recycle his shirts into something he can continue to use. He absolutely loved it and we have been enjoying naps on our sofa over the holidays covered with our warm and eco-friendly Star Wars quilt.

It was easy to make, so if you have a collection of band T-Shirts or souvenir shirts from your travels, this is a great way to make something that you can continue to cherish for many years to come. Here are step by step instructions with some pictures.

Wash all your T-Shirts.
Layout your shirts on the floor and decide on the size for each square (I made them all the same size but you could have different sizes. I decided on the size based on the shirt with the largest graphic).
Create a template from a piece of cardboard.
Place the template on each shirt and outline using a fabric marker or you can also use a Sharpie and then cut them out using scissors.
Once you have all shirts cut place them on the floor and decide on the layout (I didn’t have enough shirts so I used the back of some of the shirts to add blank squares).
Decide on the layout
Start sewing each horizontal row by placing the first squares together (with image area facing each other) and sew using a straight stitch. Then add the next square etc. until you have each horizontal line sewn together.
Before you sew all the individual rows together, press the seams apart on the back and pin in place.
Place the first two of the horizontal rows together (image area facing each other), make sure to line up the seams and pin in place.
Sew using straight stitch and repeat with all rows.
All squares sewn together
Decide on the size of your quilt (the size of your sewn together T-Shirts or do you want to have a border around).
Choose a fabric for the back (I decided to use a nice warm fleece), and buy quilt batting (make sure to get some extra batting).
Place fleece on the floor add quilt batting and place T-Shirt front on top.
Use large safety pins to connect all 3 fabrics together (I used one safety-pin per square).
If you are making a border with the fleece like I did, fold over the fleece and pin together.
Pin corners.
Sew along the border of the quilt.
Sew the corners (I sewed them by hand with a blind stitch).
Hand sewn corners
Connect all 3 layers together throughout the quilt by placing a couple of stitches wherever the panels meet. This will ensure that the fabrics don’t move around. Remove the safety-pins.
Place a couple of stitches to connect all 3 layers of fabric
Snuggle up on the sofa with your warm quilt and have a hot tea or a hot chocolate.

If you have any questions just let me know. Enjoy!

Love

Anja

Posted on November 13, 2012 by anjastudios — Leave a comment

Holiday art show & sale

I am joining two amazing artists (Charlene Brown and Colleen Leduc) to put on a holiday art show/sale. Come and join us at Clayhaus on Nov. 24 & 25 (12 to 5). A great chance to see some great local art and to get some Christmas shopping done. There will be pottery, paintings, photography, screen prints, jewelry and accessories made from recycled materials to choose from.

Hope to see you at the show!

Ciao!
Anja

xmas_show_and_sale

Posted on September 23, 2012 by anjastudios — Leave a comment

It’s been a while….

It’s been a while. Who am I kidding…it’s been a long time. My life has been a bit crazy. I decided to leave my job at Fusion after 13 years, started a new job, spent a month travelling around in Europe, went on my first business trip ever – to Hawai’i (I know crazy) and have been working a lot of 15 hour days. So considering all that I have not had any time to paint or design any jewelry. It’s been a wild ride and through it all I found a new love – Hawai’i. What an amazing place! I have fallen in love with its beauty and the kindness of the people. I would move there in a second and I know K. says that I say that about every place I travel to, which isn’t totally true. I got to spend a week in Honolulu, got to fly to Maui for the day, drove to the North Shore, went surfing twice, oh and worked over 70 hours that week. I didn’t take a lot of pictures, but here are a few. Mahalo Hawai’i!!!!!