Ona Judge's Forgotten Story
It was in July of 2018. It began like all my other paintings; I dove in, letting the paint's random marks and shapes tell me where to go. A face emerged; I chased the features, realizing it was a portrait of George Washington.
I was stunned and confused. Not because I was painting something that surprised me, I often paint things that I don't understand. This time, not only didn't I care about this figure, his stance and uniform irritated me. Sure, during that year, in fact, since 2016, I was thinking deeply about what America was and what it had become, but I saw this cartoonish homage to this political figure and didn't get it.
Blocked, I faced the piece to the wall and forgot about it. I moved on to other paintings.
In the course of a few months, shuffling things from one part of my studio to another, I would come across "that George Washington thing," as I called it in my mind. It occurred to me to turn it upside down and obliterate what was there, start something new, but I didn't. I would push to the back of the studio and carry on with other work.
One day, I was standing in front of the vast Mark Bradford mixed media/collage piece "Helter Skelter I" at The Broad, feeling the layered surface's history with my eyes. Lost in thought, a voice in my head said, "and what are you going to do about "that George Washington thing" in your studio?" My heart sank for a moment. I walked away from I had been standing and sat down, feeling defeated.
Sitting there, from nowhere, I heard the tin voice whisper, "maybe you should read up about George Washington." I got on my phone and started researching the life of George Washington. The human beings he held as property.
Reading on, I came to the details about Ona Judge born c., 1773 was a dower slave to Betty, a seamstress, and Andrew Judge by the white, an English tailor indentured servant at Mount Vernon.
Ona went to live at the manor house at the age of 10. She became an expert at needlework and eventually became Mrs. Washington's body servant.
In March 1796, Mrs. Washington informed Ona that she would be given as a wedding present to her granddaughter, who had married English expatriate Thomas Law.
Ona Judge planned her escape, one night, in May of 1796, as the Washingtons were having her dinner, she slipped away and was hidden by friends until she could find passage on a Northbound ship.
This history, what life was like for someone like Ona Judge or all the other people who were slaves, was never a part of what I learned in school nor how it affected the way this country developed.
I am still woefully ignorant about the ongoing repercussions of slavery woven into the fabric of our lives today. I have a lot of learning to do.
After learning about Ona Judge, finishing this painting became clear to me. The spin we were fed about the founding fathers' noble intentions was just a twisted fairy tale—the chopping down the cherry tree, all of it, made-up nonsense. People who lived, suffered, and died under the weight of this horrid structure of oppression are nameless and faceless, as are the people who suffer it to this day.
Actress Moves Into 1920's West Hollywood Home
I’m delighted that my painting, “Actress” has been acquired for a collector’s stunning 1920’s residence. The building has all the charm and elegant proportions of Californian Medditerrian architecture.
Her mysterious regard looks like she may not quite be ready to emerge from behind the curtain.
Pre Covid Argument at Gallery 825
I’m delighted my mixed media piece, “Pre Covid Argument” will be part of the LAAA 2020 Open Show. Curated by Shana Nys Dambrot, Arts Editor for the L.A. Weekly, and a contributor to Flaunt, Art & Cake, and Artillery.
Gallery 825 is located at 825 N La Cienega Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90069. The show runs from December 12 to January 15, 2020. The gallery is observing strict guidelines for viewing the work safely. Call ahead before visiting 310 652 8272.
New Painting "The Crow and The Swallow"
Based on Aesop’s Fable “The Crow and the Swallow”.
The story goes; a Swallow was once boasting to a Crow about her birth. "I was once a princess," said she, "the daughter of a King of Athens, but my husband used me cruelly, and cut out my tongue for a slight fault. Then, to protect me from further injury, I was turned by Juno into a bird." "You chatter quite enough as it is," said the Crow. "What you would have been like if you hadn't lost your tongue, I can't think."
This fable annoyed me so, I had to make the painting. The swallow was at fault for mentioning her misfortune? I suppose sympathy or compassion would be too much to expect.In my painting, the crow is actually sitting on a mythological bird with angry teeth and ironically a huge tongue. I wanted to represent something more hideous than an aberration of a recognizable version of a crow, as the response to her story was so vulgar to me.
ShoutOut L.A.
I am delighted that ShoutOut L.A. has done a profile on me, my work as an artist, visual storyteller, and color consultant. It’s not until someone asks me how one aspect of my practice informs the other that I see the big picture. Years spent working as a designer and scenic artist in the theater, television, and film industry fed my experience of telling stories through images.
Click on the image below to read the full story.
Elephant Finds Home
in artist, artist's work, gallery
I am pleased to announce, that “Stolen Innocence” has been sold to a collector in Los Angeles.
"Exalted One" Group Exhibition at Gallery 825
I am pleased to have my drawing “Too Much Information” in the group show “Exalted One” at Gallery 825. Click the link to see the entire show.
"A Surreal Life" Exhibition from Castelli Art Space on Artsy
What could be more bizarre than the times in which we live? Inspired by dreams, fantasy, and the occasional despondent nightmare, we embark upon a journey into destinations unknown, through surreal and figurative art. Curated by Dale Youngman, “A Surreal Life” runs from July 2 through November 2 by Castelli Art Space on Artsy. The exhibition includes the work of five artists, Nathalie Tierce, Randi Matushevitz, Luis Sanchez, Cory Sewelson, and Julie Gardner.
Founded in 2016 by Fred Goldstein, Castelli Art Space continues to provide contemporary exhibits in all mediums by local and international artists through Artsy. Featuring undiscovered and emerging through mid-career artists, their curated online programming is designed to be provocative, creative, thought-provoking, eclectic, and distinctive.
Razorcake Review
The critic Craven Rock from Razorcake has done a great review of my book, Fairy Tale Remnants.
Razorcake is a punk rock fanzine published bi-monthly out of Los Angeles, California. It was co-founded by Todd Taylor (former Flipside managing editor) and Sean Carswell (author and Gorsky Press co-founder) in 2001
Fairy Tale Remnants By Nathalie Tierce, 37 pgs.
All the illustrations in this book were once on a canvas. They’ve been reproduced into this little glossy book in full color and it’s a pleasure to look at. Well, it’s a pleasure if you’re a bit twisted, anyway, because these pictures are dark and surreal. Each figure, be it a human or animal or combination of the two, is contorted, out of sync, and grotesque—whether it be the baby throwing down with the snake, a boxer getting destroyed by his opponent, or the stripper and her dead-eyed, shark-faced customers, or Adam and Eve enjoying their exile from Eden cavorting naked near a pile of skulls.
Tierce, in the introduction, talks about the monsters she would see in the darkness as a kid, “waiting to jump out and grab her.” Now she attempts to recreate this feeling by starting with a black canvas and then turning the shapes she sees into the lost and damned creatures in this book. –Craven Rock (Indigo Raven Publishing, 1413 ½ W. Kenneth Rd., Glendale, CA 91201)
Instagram Live Event @ JoyFanaticFoundation June 5 @ 7:30 pm
I’m thrilled to be in conversation this evening on IG live with Terrence McClain, founder of Joy Fanatic Foundation. Terrence has a history as an artist’s advocate, producing events that bring communities out and share their art form whether it be the visual arts, fashion or music.
You can catch the recorded version here on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/p/CBFBL9cnL6Z/
Strange Times Require Even Stranger Reading
If we could have gone back a few months and tried to explain how our world has changed since COVID-19, it would be hard to believe. In the historical scheme of things, human beings have suffered plagues before and come through.
So much of the anxiety we feel, longing for what we had, loneliness, all of it is difficult to get our minds around. For me, it has always been comforting seeing the push and pull of desire and its consequence (whether it has a moral or not) embodied in fables. Somehow being able to commune with an image that was only a momentary dream impression gives me solace.
Looking for Visual Escapism during Quarantine?
Everyone is feeling cagey. It’s normal. Social distancing to slow down the impact of COVID-19 is the right thing to do.
However, being in quarantine is a drag. There’s only so much surfing Facebook and Instagram one can do.
Experience another world through art in a book. Hold the pages in your hands while contemplating someone else’s point of view while communing with your feelings as you respond to the subliminal imagery and writing.
Hyperallergic: A View From the Easel During Times of Quarantine
I’m delighted to be included in Hyperallergic magazine’s article, “A View From the Easel During Times of Quarantine”.
It’s been a strange time for all of us, trying to find a way forward amidst the uncertainty, isolation, homeschooling our kids, and being separated from our friends and family.
For me, being in the studio and finding flow is finding freedom and hope.
The link to the article is below.
Making Art in Quarantine
I’m making a concerted effort to dig through anything I can find in my studio during the COVID-19 quarantine to use as art materials.
Years ago when my husband Chris worked on the Jimmy Kimmel Show as a prop maker and they still used cue cards instead of the autocue for filming, he brought them home to use for all sorts of things, stencils, masking, palettes, etc.
Rummaging around, I found a few behind my desk. Normally I didn't use them for making finished pieces of art on, but hey, they're here, great quality and free. I'm in. This is a short video about this piece, "Lady and Frog".
A Birthday Party with No Escape
in art, artist, artist's work
