GoLocalProv | Artist to Know: Sydney Sousa

Wednesday, February 08, 2023

Visual art is a deeply individual type of expression. Makers who come across a way to authentically share their stories via their perform appreciate powerful connections with viewers. Local artist Sydney Sousa is a key instance of this simple fact, and has discovered a dedicated subsequent as a result of the heartfelt way she expresses herself in the medium of summary painting. She is an rising expertise whose introspective studio observe is developing partaking artworks.

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Sousa was elevated in East Providence and found herself having the pursuit of artwork critically in her superior school artwork courses. She channeled this fascination into her college training, researching at Rhode Island University, where she gained her undergraduate degree in psychology and studio artwork with a concentration in painting. She went on to be picked for the inaugural cohort of WaterFire’s Accelerate Application, a selective year long specialist enhancement application for younger artists in the state. When not earning artwork of her individual, Sousa utilizes her resourceful energies in her work as an routines therapist at Butler Medical center, in which she functions with shoppers on creative projects ranging from art to poetry.

As a born Rhode Islander, Sousa has an appreciation for the resourceful group in the state. Speaking of it, she says, “I delight in currently being an artist in Rhode Island for the reason that even although we are a modest point out we are filled with creatives. I appreciate connecting with the group, studying and gaining inspiration from other individuals.”

The inspiration that drives Sousa’s painting exercise finds root in a multitude of sources. Her studio is densely wallpapered with references. Photographs of household and close friends discover spots on her wall alongside artworks created by purchasers she has labored with at Butler. Stacks of art background publications underlie buckets of brushes and palettes with oils at the prepared. A Keith Haring blanket covers a couch in the room, even though shots of Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat peek out from over her desk. Questioned what artists and movements she is most interested in at the instant, she responses, “Artists in background that have been inspiring me lately are Tracey Emin, Willem De Kooning, and Lee Krasner. Abstract expressionism is my greatest appreciate.”

That enthusiasm for abstraction is apparent throughout Sousa’s manufacturing. She relishes in paint and lavishes her canvases with tone and texture. On one wall of her studio, her most up-to-date painting is in course of action, with gauzy stains of coloration staying utilized and errant drips locating their way to the wall and floor. The effect of Sousa’s initial move at her canvas is reminiscent of Helen Frankenthaler.

A modern addition to her work has been the inclusion of figures inside of her typically abstracted fields of shade and gesture. These languid sorts occasionally attract from artwork historic references or source their styles in other places.

The artist clarifies the inclusion of these newer bodily motifs in her artwork, indicating, “My paintings are all about interpersonal ordeals and emotion. Applying figures came into enjoy through the pandemic when social interactions had been minimal. As time has handed I typically use two figures in my perform symbolizing relationships I’ve developed and associations that have ended. Portray for me is identical to holding a diary.”

For Sousa, her studio follow is in fact deeply personal. Whilst she has exhibited her perform and participated in exhibits in the course of the place, she in the end finds that she paints for herself. Her artworks are embedded with references to her possess daily life, but function attributes that have a broader attraction and offer probabilities for viewers to hook up with the artist by shared activities.

Asked what she hopes audiences see or experience when interacting with her paintings, Sousa says she is aiming for a deep link. She states, “I hope audiences have an psychological working experience becoming in the presence of my work. I hope those people viewing my perform are taken back again to a memory of their personal or a lesson they have figured out. I hope for an psychological realization.”

Sousa’s paintings do give chances for this emotional link and invite viewers in to meet up with the artist on her phrases. Despite the fact that a youthful artist nevertheless in the midst of finding and shaping her voice, Sousa has already revealed a dedication to sharing and setting up connections with her operate. As her exercise evolves, it will be fascinating to see where by her talent takes her.

You can observe Sydney Sousa’s perform and updates from her East Providence studio on Instagram @sydsousa.

Michael Rose is a multi-proficient wonderful art qualified primarily based in Southern New England. Because 2014 he has served as the gallery supervisor at the historic Providence Artwork Club, 1 of the nation’s oldest arts businesses. By means of his recent freelance do the job he advises collectors and artists, provides appraisal expert services, teaches, and completes curatorial jobs.

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