Our September Artist of the month goes to mixed media artist Teresa Currea who makes intricate and fanciful paper dioramas.
Teresa Currea
Bogotá, Colombia
Website: www.teresacurrea.com
Instagram:
"Paper is a very versatile material and I want to explore its possibilities..."
Where do you make your paper art?
I have been working in a small studio in Bogotá, for 9 years.
How long have you been working with paper?
I have liked working with paper very much since I was a child. However, as a professional artist I have been working for 13 years.
How would you describe your approach to paper art?
Paper is a very versatile material and I want to explore its possibilities beyond being the support for my drawings. I want to explore the creation of three-dimensional dioramas in which the viewer could appreciate many details.
Where do you find inspiration?
I find inspiration in the city in which I live, Bogotá, capital of Colombia. Walking its streets and knowing its hidden treasures. Also, traveling and getting to know new places and cultures, and in the books that I read and whose pages I can also travel and exercise my imagination.
Describe your work to us in three words:
Imagination, dedication, details.
What are your favorite papers to work with?
I almost always work with a very simple paper that in Colombia is known as Cartulina Durex, which has an off-white color that I really like. I also use natural fiber artisan paper made in Colombia, and Fabriano Academia for larger drawings.
What tool could you not live without?
My Olfa cutter, my pencils (I like to try different brands), a Copic pen 0.03 in brown color, and my watercolors.
What is the best thing about working with paper as a medium?
That I can take it with me wherever I go. Also, I like to challenge all the possibilities, and use different techniques. I’m also a drawing artist so I change easy from ink to pencil to watercolor.
Who are your favorite paper artists?
I like to discover new artists all the time, but I can mention today: Casey Curran, Ricardo Lanzarini, and Diana Beltran Herrera.
What are you working on at the moment?
Right now, I am finishing the production of my next solo exhibition that will take place in Bogotá. However, the drawings that I am going to exhibit were made during my one-year stay in Japan. The name of the exhibition is Kokoro, which means "heart" in Japanese.
