Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ellen Mueller. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Ellen, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
The most meaningful recent project I’ve been working on recently is a series of monoprints and drawings entitled, “Home Energy Survey.” In this work, I am examining power as it relates to single family homes, the pre-colonial environment of Minnesota, electrical grids, nature, and larger community systems of infrastructure. I am influenced by my time in the garden where I spend a lot of time with native plants in an urban landscape. Visually, I am drawn to the complexity and unpredictability of watercolor washes in contrast with sharper line work and shapes.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I am an interdisciplinary artist based in Minneapolis, Minnesota (Dakota and Ojibwe lands) exploring issues related to late-stage capitalism with particular focus on the environment. Currently, I am Director of Programs at Arts Midwest. Previously, I have been a member of the faculty at Minneapolis College of Art and Design [MCAD], UMass Dartmouth, West Virginia Wesleyan College, and Colorado State University-Pueblo.
I’ve been working in the arts for two decades and differentiate my creative practice via a variety of media from performance and video to printmaking and drawing. Concepts are at the heart of every work, or series of works, for me. I’m very responsive to place, and much of my work reflects the wide variety of locations I have lived.
I am also an author of textbooks, and these too reflect a deep interdisciplinarity: Elements and Principles of 4D Art and Design (2016, Oxford University Press), Remixing and Drawing: Sources, Influences, Styles (2018, Routledge Focus), Some Social Practice (2020, Creative Commons), and Walking as Artistic Practice (2023, SUNY Press).
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
I built my audience on social media very slowly over time through consistent posting. I am very generous with sharing a lot of material by other artists, which helps create a sense of community. Getting media attention is quite difficult, and I like to use my platform to boost others whenever possible.
I often visit a wide variety of exhibitions and then share my favorite pieces online to help give that extra boost to other artists in the community. This is a great way to build a network and authentic connections based on your true interests.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
I have created a book list that I often share with other artists to help them with professional development:
https://bookshop.org/lists/professional-practices-for-artists-designers
There are a ton of fantastic resources listed here, and artists can pick and choose what most speaks to them.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ellenmueller.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ellenmmueller/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ellenmueller/
- Other: https://bsky.app/profile/ellenmartist.bsky.social
Image Credits
Ellen Mueller