I’m definitely feeling nostalgic…this is where my imagination started and I’m fascinated by that experience of escape. “
Particularly in her early career, Gill was impressed by the art world’s description of her as a Surrealist. It doesn’t matter if it’s popular or vulgar. This doesn’t sound real. It seems the world is bent on describing her work as somehow surreal.
But part of the reason Gill’s work has been so successful over the years is her ability to weave her own stories into her paintings. She uses the term “narrative escapism” to suggest that these works exploit vulnerability rather than experiences shared or rooted in the subconscious. She doesn’t want to describe anything but herself. Her work focuses on personal emotions, attachment and paranoia. While they are not entirely autobiographical, in the sense that we get a sense of Lola’s real or imagined world, her works do depict the realities she went through in order to understand her own reality. The good moments, the not-so-good moments, the misunderstood moments. Rather than slipping into unconsciousness, they step aside and take a different perspective.
She said: “My personal art is just therapy for me. When it goes out into the world and leaves me and becomes art for the world, it becomes something else. Back in 2000 When I was first making a living as an artist in the mid-1990s, I was put into the category of surrealism, but I didn’t feel like it encompassed what I was creating, by making myself feel personally positive about the issues I was painting. Me, my work is surreal, the more I try to find a place where it does mean something, for me as an artist, first of all it has to inspire and awaken me, but it also has to open a door when it leaves the studio, it has to inspire thinking, hopefully even after you leave the canvas.”
Gill’s work inspires an exploration of the question: What would make you happier? The problem is real. face value. Take it or leave it, but it’s the kind of question you’ll end up returning to again and again, no matter how hard you try to rise above it, try to convince yourself that you’re above it, or don’t deserve a yes answer.
I allow myself to be vulnerable and chase I myself need to open up, forgive past relationships, and see myself clearly Clear lenses. “
For herself, the answer is empathy. Elegant, clean empathy. She describes the glass statue as a magnifying glass. They are also the bardo, a limited space. Where we go between existences. Will we be better off or worse off at the end of the journey?
The glass distorts and we can dwell there confused and alone, or we can realize that it depicts a man with very real hopes and goals. Her latest paintings depict these figures in focus, but what if we could look away? Just a little bit and you can see the person on the other side of the character.
“What I hope for is that it shows the depth of a person behind the rendering glass, a person whose life is just like yours or mine, albeit perhaps different. Once we begin to see each other as a human being with emotions and experiences, whether equal, lesser, or worse, we can begin to impart compassion that engenders respect, care, and actively helps ensure a beautiful Earth for our children and future generations to survive. I remain hopeful for the sake of our species,” Gill said. *
This article originally appeared as a cover feature in High Fructose Issue 69. Get a print copy of the issue here. Thank you for reading and supporting our independent arts publication.
