Sky Series

Paintings by Angie Lister

Asymmetric Magazine: Tell us about your work and style as an abstract artist.
Angie Lister: My work is considered abstract but is very intentional; I choose the image I wish to work from, and create a painting from my perspective of that image. The way I see the shapes and images that inspire me, is what has created a unique artistic look that encompasses everything I create. I prefer working large, colorful, and organically, versus geometrically. Organic shapes move and flow, and work in relationship with one another–like a dance.

AM: What's your biggest inspiration?
AL: Visually, my inspiration comes from color and shapes, especially the shapes that water influences. In some of my work, I have painted shapes through the effect of moving water; in others I have painted the water itself or how people or things are reflected by it. Clouds, which are the greatest influence in the Sky Series, are made up of millions of droplets of water or ice crystals that are reflecting the sun and the sky. The organic shapes that have the biggest influence on me are those that have been created by water, such as holes and grooves in rocks, weathered wood, or misshapen shells that have been created by saltwater.

AM: How does your Sky Series compare to your other paintings?
AL: Sky Series is ongoing. It is something I try to add to at least once a year, and I plan on continuing throughout my lifetime. There is really no concrete explanation for the feeling that I get when I see a sunset or sunrise that is so full of color and breathtaking forms. The visual experience of such an incredible thing is not even as inspiring to me as the mystery of the experience of it; that I am capable of being aware of its beauty is unexplainable and has a profound influence on me.

AM: What role does Los Angeles play in your work?
AL: I feel at home in Los Angeles–more than anywhere else. Los Angeles has its own rhythm, and it is calming. I picked my graduate school, which is just outside of LA, purposely so I could be influenced by the city and the artwork being made here, especially street art. There is a plethora of museums and galleries where an artist can go and find influence. I did not grow up here, but I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. For me as an artist, my environment is very important for my work to progress.

AM: What themes do you typically pursue in your work?
AL: Visually, I think the major themes in my work are movement and color, the way shapes move and relate to one another, and how the movement of water creates such powerful images. Color is a huge part of my work because I love the way it grabs you and pulls you in to experience the work. I sometimes springboard off of the visual in a body of work that I have chosen to create intuitively, pulling from my inspirations, then later delve into what drives that intuition philosophically. Sometimes I will start with a concept, such as a show I currently have on display: a conversation between the graphic arts and the fine arts, the theme being interpretation of an image through the two different media and how each is an art form that can enhance the other. I definitely derive the majority of my themes organically.

AM: What music is currently inspiring you?
AL: Music is one of my greatest inspirations, I never work without it. Even if I am listening to a show or movie while I work, there is the soundtrack. Currently it is music from the '80s, which I’ve always found to be meaningful, fun and original. Tears For Fears, Duran Duran, The Cure, Depeche Mode, etc. get me through many hours of painting, and so do Cat Stevens, Neil Young, Jim Croce, David Bowie, The Moody Blues, The Band, Yes, America, Fleetwood Mac, E.L.O, Sinatra, Armstrong, and Debussy. Some newer artists that I’ve been enjoying are Broken Bells, Radical Face, Noah and the Whale, Jose Gonzalez, Moby, Over The Rhine, Coconut Records, Sigur Ros, and Caravan Palace.

AM: What can we expect to see from you next?
AL: I have a show opening in February 2017 of Sky paintings in the Chicago area. It will be the first time I have dedicated an entire gallery of my work to this series in eight years.

Angie Lister is an LA-based painter, designer and muralist from Indiana. You can find more of her work at angielister.com.