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My friend just went into labor!
is whatLoie Hollowellgreets me with at the door of her Ridgewood, Queens, art studio.
But its also frank and funny about sex and of course travels well on Instagram.
I make them over and over again in a million colors.
This time, Hollowell shifts away from depictions of her sex life and focuses on one of its results.
Theres no penises, its all me, she says of the paintings.
The nine works represent Hollowells body during pregnancy, while giving birth, and postpartum.
Im thinking of them as portraits of myself, she says.
Glowing orbs and concentric circles fill the canvases, punctuated with 3-D high-density foam pieces.
The works abstract the artists body into something resembling the solar system.
So it makes sense Pace is having her works amongst the offerings at their multi-gallery new art galleria.
Theres an undeniable anticipatory vibe in the air that day.
The mandorla, Italian for almond, has become a regular feature in Hollowells paintings.
Im into thinking about the practice of making art as a spiritual practice, Hollowell tells me.
Hollowell was conceived at the Roswell Artist-in-Residence Program the same Roswell of UFO fame.
She says her parents, artists David and Terry Hollowell, like to talk about that.
I ask Hollowell if the fickleness of collecting trends concerns her, as well.
Definitely, she says.
I think art goes in cycles.
She would like her new body of work to be more universal to viewers, too.
Hollowell cites comedians Amy Schumer, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and Ali Wong as some of her main inspirations.
These women are just doing exactly what I want to do with painting.
Theyre just being so honest, but universal, Hollowell says.
Its like theyre super honest, but not being aggressive about it theyre not excluding men.
Theyre being like,Isnt this hilarious, listen to my story.
Plumb Lineopens September 14 at Pace Gallery, 540 W. 25th St., 2nd fl.
