Sucker Punch of Colour

Welcome to the inaugural post of Marmalade Parade! To start us off with a bang, I'd like to present the work of Eliza Griffiths, who is hands-down, holy hell, one of my all-time favourite artists. And she's Canadian! Her 'Psycho-Drama' paintings are intimate and bizarre, glamourous in a dirty fairy-tale sort of way... and yet still feel utterly human.

The protagonists are kind of broken human creatures, living in a disturbing gorgeous daydream of desire, bruises, disenchantment, body hair, comedy, struggle, neon... all of which are the most fun things in the world! At least to me.

Here are some of my favourite pieces by the incredible Ms. Griffiths:

Need For Speed (2000-2001)

Abundance (2005)

Universal Healthcare For Everyone (2005)

Honestly, it's all the more mesmerizing up close, in real life. If you're lucky, you can catch her latest paintings and drawings showing at the Katharine Mulherin Gallery in Toronto (exhibition runs until October 24th). Here are examples of more recent pieces:

 

Urban Narrative (2007-2010)

 Hypnotist (2007-2010)

 Gamblers (2007-2010)

(Images from elizagriffiths.com)

I was inspired by her work even in my high school years, designing an extremely limited fashion line (ahem, 2 outfits.... yep, pretty limited) for my school fashion show. Revealing garments, vivid colours accentuated with innocence. Alas, no bare nipples allowed.