Underground Art School

STUDENT // TEACHER: Mia Christopher

Mia Christopher is a multi-disciplinary artist in San Francisco. She is currently attending the California College of the Arts for drawing and painting. The theme of community seems to be a constant in her artwork and it is a great reminder for students and professionals: we can't create alone because we need an audience and inspiration from others, we don't learn alone, and we can't build a career by ourselves. 

STUDENT // TEACHER: Lauren Gentry

Lauren Gentry is a 4th year illustration student at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design in Scotland. Set to graduate this spring (HEEEY GURL!) we wanted to post some sketchbook drawings and final illustrations for a children's book project just to remind us all of the importance of a sketchbook. No jokes. Sketchbooks are the truth! We here at Underground Art School enable sketchy behavior.

Check more work out on her Flickr, Blog, aaaand Twitter, 'cause we love the Twitter. Oh, and since we're encouraging sketchbook use, you could join Art House Co-op's Sketchbook Monthlies (it's a sketchbook of the month club)! Let go of that final piece pressure and pick up a sketchbook.

STUDENT // TEACHER: Alisha Amirkhanian

 A spirited, unruly student is preferable. It's much easier to direct passion than to try and inspire it. 

-Joan Desmond

I'm posting the work of Cali based artist Alisha Amirkhanian today. I couldn't find out much about Alisha except that she's an artist...and from California. I love the diversity between her paintings, drawings + photography. Where her paintings + drawings show intimate, very realistic moments of life with traditional color palettes, her photography flips her artistic world into a colorful spin of surrealism.

STUDENT // TEACHER: Joakim Ojanen

Joakim Ojanen is studying for a BA in illustration and graphic design from Konstfack (University of Arts, Craft + Design) in Stockholm but he fills his blog with his very diverse projects such as sculpture, drawings, 'zine's, and murals. Switching up mediums and modes of making keeps us pushing, we can't stay in our comfort zones forever, that's not what art + design are about.

On the topic of murals and zones, if you're in the Hartford, CT area tomorrow, come to the 4th Annual CCSU Mural Slam. We'll be there, gettin' our paint on.

 

STUDENT // TEACHER: Suzi Kemp

School is officially in session. We wanted to kick off this semester with a little  Suzi Kemp who is a recent graduate from Brighton University in the UK. According to her bio, Suzi writes "I particularly like drawing scoundrels, thugs, dogs, rad girls, bad tattoos and also more pleasant things too sometimes." We like where this going.

 

 

 

You have to check out her 'zine The Book of Norm. It's based on the following Umberto Eco quote: "There are four types: The cretin, the imbecile, the stupid, and the mad. Normality is a balance of all four."

Loving it.

Now go make some art! Fill those brains with ideas, history, coffee, and new ways to interpret and communicate the world to those who cannot see its truths!

And make it to your crits on time.

STUDENT // TEACHER: Justin Paszul

The society created by '08 Montserrat College of Art grad Justin Paszul is archaic but modern, simplistic + spiritual, disturbing + intriguing. Would you want to live there or do you think you would run?

 

 

 

 

 
The caption for this last image is: "Our intrepid hero suffers a meltdown, and so close to the Promised Land." Yea, I know what that feels like.

Check out more on Flickr Facebook Etsy or Formspring a question.

STUDENT // TEACHER: Kristyna Litten

 I am really loving the 'zine and illustration work of Kristyna Litten. Kristyna is currently studying at the Edinburgh College of Art. What really got me inspired was her life drawings.

 

Now when I was in my figure drawing class in art school, and no offense to my professor, I felt like I had to draw people a certain way; as realistic as I could possibly get. Not Kristyna. Nope. No matter what she's going to draw people the way she sees them. I wish I had done that.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

This was a guest post by Racheal Anilyse, Underground Art School's Creative Director