Winter Artist Insight Spotlight

By Ayla Sichi '28

As the liminal period between Fall Break and Winter Break came to an end, Cate’s winter art gallery was filled with an assortment of pieces from Independent art, Art Relay, and the 9th-grade PSI Day. During the time each piece is on display, it could be easy to miss the opportunity to fully observe and appreciate the pieces in relation to their artists. In this article, three Cate artists, Lisa Hasebe ‘27, Andrew Peng ‘26, and Gwen McTigue ‘26, provide their insights into their artistic process in Studio Art. 

Lisa Hasebe’s acrylic paintings are collections of the love she finds in the people around her. In her creations, she explores where happiness manifests in the people she keeps close. More specifically, her inspiration derives from the discovery of where warmth lies in other people’s lives through spoken exchange. She is intentional in her conversations and transfers observations into her painted works. In her words, “I try to use conversations I have with people that are positive.” In isolating these parts of people's lives, her pieces take shape and purpose. Lisa’s art has also been a way for her to maintain a connection with the people she loves back home, as gift-giving is her way of expressing herself. The canvas provides a way for messages that might be harder to put into words to be formulated and put out for interpretation. Additionally, Lisa also finds inspiration through activities that require her full attention, such as playing tennis, listening to music, napping, or relaxing at Lucky Llama. These more vivid experiences evoke emotion, and, with that, they give her new inspiration for her paintings. 

Shifting mediums to collage, Andrew Peng approaches his work with less of a final product in mind and instead creates his final piece by exploring process and idea. The material limitations of collage, he expresses, create a comfort level that allows him to create his best work. Paradoxically, Andrew also describes a discomfort in the collaging process; he has found that when he was more meticulous about planning a specific outcome, his development and final formation of his pieces came out less authentic. He is particularly inspired by the works of Japanese author Haruki Murakami. Murakami’s surrealist novels center around more peculiar occurrences for ordinary citizens in metropolitan Japan. With the addition of fantastical and surreal elements, Murakami’s work explores the emotions of the human condition in settings that are otherwise widely considered mundane. In a parallel manner, Andrew takes more “mundane items,” as he calls them, to construct his works. He uses materials such as outdated magazines, interesting scraps from the art loft trash can (like acrylic paint pallets), wet paper towels, and smaller items (like bits of string and yarn). Overall, the meaning behind Andrew’s art lies in the materials and process of mixed-media collage, as well as in its final product. 

Gwen McTigue has a driving belief in taking what is already meaningful and original to her and using it to generate her art. She utilizes a range of art media, including oil paint, woodcutting, and sculpture. Gwen looks through what is prevalent in her life, challenging herself to find things that are “already there and hiding in plain sight.” She finds that her creativity thrives most when she uses material to inspire that is original to her. She describes a recent example of this in an oil painting she is working on, a digital camera photo she took of her brother when she was younger. The act of capturing the world through her youthful perspective and a loved one as a subject brings multiple layers of originality to her piece. Her references, while connected to her own life, aren’t necessarily chosen to capture a certain feeling. It's during the creation process that she might lean into a specific emotion evoked, thereby enhancing the piece’s final product. Gwen's painting process often starts with a small mock-up to visualize the final product. A satisfactory mock-up creates anticipation, which boosts motivation to create the bigger, more detailed painting. In an overarching sense, Gwen uses tools around her, such as important aspects of her life, or the simple act of creating a mock-up, to keep her motivated to keep creating and challenging herself.