Voula Christopoulos is a Melbourne based artist who has completed a Bachelor Degree in Fine Art at RMIT. She has been painting for many years with various mediums and now mainly works with oil paint on canvas. Painting for her, is a way of interpreting and expressing her emotional response to the subject matter that she is working on. The work is focused on memories, dreams and the subconscious and she explores this idea through the domestic interior, since it is the home, where dreams and memories are made. Her paintings are familiar, intimate glimpses of an interior space that could evoke a memory in most of us. They are not always fully described, allowing them to be open to interpretation, which makes them both familiar and vague, like a fragmented recollection of a dream or memory.
Tell us a bit about what a day may look like for you as an artist. Where are you based and what are some of the things that you do in your daily routine? Tell us about your morning rituals, your cup of tea/coffee, plants, etc!
I like to take my time in the morning to enjoy my breakfast and a much needed cup of coffee. I also feel I have to do some of my daily chores before starting my painting day, as I like to have a clear headspace. I am then ready to immerse myself into a painting day and head to my upstairs studio that has a beautiful view of the Dandenong ranges.
How did you start your creative practice and why? Are you self-taught, an art student, a full-time artist, etc?
I was always creative as a child, having an interest in sewing and textiles but didn’t pursue anything through my younger years. It was only as an adult, that I took up painting classes, first on porcelain then on other various surfaces and with different mediums including engraved Iconography. I began painting on canvas with oils, which I was enjoying very much and felt good about my work; this was when a friend of mine suggested I do something serious about it. That planted a seed for me to think about art school, and so, as a mature aged student I eventually completed my Bachelor of Arts (Fine Art).
Have you got a studio/creative workplace? Tell us a bit about where you create and some of the significant things that support and inspire your practice.
I have a small upstairs studio at home that works well for me, as I often only work on small canvases. I have had the opportunity to work in a shared studio space in the past but I find working from
home saves the commute time. I also find that as soon as I get into the studio and close the door behind me I immediately get into my happy place. Working on several pieces at a time also works for me, as I can get started on something straight away without any delay.
What are some of the ideas that you explore in your work and the mediums that you have chosen to work with?
For some time now I have been exploring the connection between memories, dreams and the subconscious. From this idea, I make paintings of domestic interior spaces because the home is where we dream and memories are made.
I mostly use oil paint for these works, often with a limited palette of muted colours to evoke a dreamlike effect. The paintings are fairly small in size, making them evocative of the subject matter, being intimate spaces.
In an increasingly digitized world, how important is your online presence? And what are some of the things that you consider when marketing your work?
I personally shy away from too much social media but I know that having an online presence is very important in acquiring an audience to display my work and also promote any exhibitions I may be having.
It is also a way for people to get an understanding of what my work is about.
Not being entirely tech savvy, I have still been able to create my own Instagram account and website where I am now showcasing a lot more of my work.
Let us know about any current/future projects – Have you got anything planned in the near future?
Apart from my ongoing work of interior spaces, I have a proposed group exhibition with fellow artist friends who I often go on field painting trips with.
I am working on a landscape project, relating to the Organ Pipes National Park, and hopefully in the near future I will be able to have an open exhibition for my new work.
Visit our Stockroom to view our collection of works by Voula Christopoulos.