Ellie Riley
Phone: 07964033884
Email:
Instagram: @ellieriley_art
Chaotic branches, overlapping in seemingly natural and unnatural
ways that overwhelm and confuse, are the subject of my project. In
the way these branches and trees create a staggering atmosphere
with their presence, I wish to connect these aesthetics to the
overwhelming nature of depressive, anxious and obsessive
thoughts that come with the hidden struggles of mental illness.
Inspired by a childhood sketchbook which I kept during my personal
experiences with mental health difficulties, I am exploring the feelings and emotions brought back from looking at these images. Forests were something I grew up around. During difficult moments, when I refused to leave the car I would find distraction in focusing on the trees, drawing them with as much realistic precision as I could. Many of my feelings as I was growing up with the depression, like the slowly composed branches, were embellished in the tangled foliage I drew.
I am working from my head to create manifestations of these
obsessive thoughts, embodying the dark energy with these
foreboding entities hidden within the forest “mind-scape”.
Painting