Interview with artist Starr

Starr’s work is AMAZING! Each painting is so different to the last. There is so much to admire in each piece. Starr describes her style as New Traditionalist, a fusion of the European Masters and modern art.

With many dedicated years as an artist, Starr is fortunate enough to be a full time artist. And she works hard! Starr mentioned that she’s sometimes painting in her studio for up to 20 hours a day.

Her large body of work includes the up close and personal portraits of Marilyn Manson, Angry Anderson and Tommy Lee. From the other end of the spectrum, are the busy cityscapes of Sydney Harbour and Brisbane’s Story Bridge. And somewhere in between, are the beautiful ballerinas and don’t get me started on the Alice in Wonderland series!!

Her paintings are now in art collections across Australia, Europe and the US. And she has a long line of group and solo exhibitions to her name.

Check out Starr’s only Queensland solo show for 2011:

Stars only come out at night
From October 14th, 2011

Tosari Galleries
4 Margaret St, Toowoomba
(07) 4638 4455

See more of Starr’s art on her website and hear about the latest pieces on facebook.

Portrait of Marilyn Manson (signed on the back by Manson himself!)

How have you got to where you are today?

I started out making money from my art by doing portraits at the age of 15. I left school and attained a Bachelor of Fine Art from the Queensland College of Art and started selling my paintings straight away and never looked back.

My first studio was in an old shop at Wooloowin and a lot of my clients from then STILL buy my work. I must say that it has taken me 15 years to work into my style and who knows where I will be in another 15 years!!

My education and inspiration has always started and finished with the Masters… Degas, Van Gogh, Picasso and Andy Warhol. I have never been inspired by contemporary artists as I am happy making my own ‘happy accidents’ and developing something original.

In a few words, describe yourself…

Arty, Eccentric, Driven, Original and a little bit Mad.

What are you spending your time on at the moment?

At the moment I am completely obsessed with Alice in Wonderland. My latest series has taken inspiration from the Tim Burton film but reflects my own journey as a woman struggling through a modern technological world, whilst trying to hold onto traditional values.

My latest exhibition features some of this work and I am looking forward to unveiling the latest in the series.

Do you have a ritual for getting into the creative mindset? Or a creative process?

Coffee!! Lots of it. No, seriously I have the luxury of a studio in my home now and I find that it’s easy to get ‘in the zone’ to paint. I have a lot of galleries that are screaming for new work and I love the thrill of finishing off a new work and sending it off.

It’s easy to be inspired when you know that you are going to be hung on somebody’s walls!!

What or who inspires you?

Again, the work of the masters like Degas and Van Gogh. It would be impossible not to be aroused by their work. I have been to the Louvre to see as much as I could in person and I have to say that it was a deeply moving experience.

I also get inspiration from the world around me. My life and my place in the world are constant themes that I am developing as I seek to make sense of it all.

I also LOVE sci-fi and if you visited me at the studio you would almost certainly catch me watching a re-run of Battlestar Gallactica.

What are you most proud of?

I love my beautiful nudes and ballerinas. They are all painted from life and I am blessed to have such beauty around me.

When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I have always wanted to be an artist. Honestly. At School I was given a scholarship to study art and I have been guided by my parents and grandparents who supported me with lessons from a very early age.

In my dreams though I always wanted to be a rockstar!