Alexis Granwell, "Crown"
Artist Statement
Alexis Granwell investigates the potential of pulp to record touch and create intimacy, much as a handwritten letter does, by offering a space for emotional connection to the viewer. During complex political times such as these, introspection and tactility feel necessary to counterbalance the fast-paced digital culture where information can be lost in the glossiness of a fattened image. Hapticity – a cross-disciplinary theory that explains how visual perceptions translate into internal experiences and feelings – draws us into the body, beyond surface encounters. Granwell began working with paper to engage in such a sensory experience.
For Granwell, her works are as much about painting as they are about sculpture, referencing hues from fleeting, everyday moments like crumbling sidewalks, dusk, bruised fruit, or flushed cheeks. She sees these inspirations of color as events and is invested in how color and texture can activate emotion, connecting to both our inward and outward experience, and creating meaning in our existence. Her sculptures evoke tension, awkwardness, anxiety, loss, and pleasure.
Artist Bio
Alexis Granwell is a Philadelphia-based artist. In her sculptures and works on paper, she investigates the potential of pulp to record touch and create intimacy, exploring the psychological and bodily characteristics of our built and natural environments.
Granwell’s work has been exhibited at Fleisher/ Ollman Gallery, Underdonk, Bravin Lee Programs, Ortega y Gasset Projects, Field Projects, Dickinson College, and Europos Parkas Museum. Her work has been reviewed in Hyperallergic, Sculpture Magazine, The Washington Post, Two Coats of Paint, and The Philadelphia Inquirer. She is a recipient of The Independence Foundation Fine Arts Fellowship Grant for 2015. From 2014-2019, she was co-director of Tiger Strikes Asteroid Philadelphia; she has been a member since its founding in 2009.
Granwell received an MFA from The University of Pennsylvania and a BFA in Painting from Boston University. She teaches at The University of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.
Crown, 11" x 7.5" x 2", handmade folded paper and pulp paint, 2021, $800.00
Artist Statement
Alexis Granwell investigates the potential of pulp to record touch and create intimacy, much as a handwritten letter does, by offering a space for emotional connection to the viewer. During complex political times such as these, introspection and tactility feel necessary to counterbalance the fast-paced digital culture where information can be lost in the glossiness of a fattened image. Hapticity – a cross-disciplinary theory that explains how visual perceptions translate into internal experiences and feelings – draws us into the body, beyond surface encounters. Granwell began working with paper to engage in such a sensory experience.
For Granwell, her works are as much about painting as they are about sculpture, referencing hues from fleeting, everyday moments like crumbling sidewalks, dusk, bruised fruit, or flushed cheeks. She sees these inspirations of color as events and is invested in how color and texture can activate emotion, connecting to both our inward and outward experience, and creating meaning in our existence. Her sculptures evoke tension, awkwardness, anxiety, loss, and pleasure.
Artist Bio
Alexis Granwell is a Philadelphia-based artist. In her sculptures and works on paper, she investigates the potential of pulp to record touch and create intimacy, exploring the psychological and bodily characteristics of our built and natural environments.
Granwell’s work has been exhibited at Fleisher/ Ollman Gallery, Underdonk, Bravin Lee Programs, Ortega y Gasset Projects, Field Projects, Dickinson College, and Europos Parkas Museum. Her work has been reviewed in Hyperallergic, Sculpture Magazine, The Washington Post, Two Coats of Paint, and The Philadelphia Inquirer. She is a recipient of The Independence Foundation Fine Arts Fellowship Grant for 2015. From 2014-2019, she was co-director of Tiger Strikes Asteroid Philadelphia; she has been a member since its founding in 2009.
Granwell received an MFA from The University of Pennsylvania and a BFA in Painting from Boston University. She teaches at The University of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.
Crown, 11" x 7.5" x 2", handmade folded paper and pulp paint, 2021, $800.00
Artist Statement
Alexis Granwell investigates the potential of pulp to record touch and create intimacy, much as a handwritten letter does, by offering a space for emotional connection to the viewer. During complex political times such as these, introspection and tactility feel necessary to counterbalance the fast-paced digital culture where information can be lost in the glossiness of a fattened image. Hapticity – a cross-disciplinary theory that explains how visual perceptions translate into internal experiences and feelings – draws us into the body, beyond surface encounters. Granwell began working with paper to engage in such a sensory experience.
For Granwell, her works are as much about painting as they are about sculpture, referencing hues from fleeting, everyday moments like crumbling sidewalks, dusk, bruised fruit, or flushed cheeks. She sees these inspirations of color as events and is invested in how color and texture can activate emotion, connecting to both our inward and outward experience, and creating meaning in our existence. Her sculptures evoke tension, awkwardness, anxiety, loss, and pleasure.
Artist Bio
Alexis Granwell is a Philadelphia-based artist. In her sculptures and works on paper, she investigates the potential of pulp to record touch and create intimacy, exploring the psychological and bodily characteristics of our built and natural environments.
Granwell’s work has been exhibited at Fleisher/ Ollman Gallery, Underdonk, Bravin Lee Programs, Ortega y Gasset Projects, Field Projects, Dickinson College, and Europos Parkas Museum. Her work has been reviewed in Hyperallergic, Sculpture Magazine, The Washington Post, Two Coats of Paint, and The Philadelphia Inquirer. She is a recipient of The Independence Foundation Fine Arts Fellowship Grant for 2015. From 2014-2019, she was co-director of Tiger Strikes Asteroid Philadelphia; she has been a member since its founding in 2009.
Granwell received an MFA from The University of Pennsylvania and a BFA in Painting from Boston University. She teaches at The University of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.
Crown, 11" x 7.5" x 2", handmade folded paper and pulp paint, 2021, $800.00