We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Monika Loster. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Monika below.

Hi Monika, 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.

As an artist I always find myself wanting to learn and try new things. As our experiences build and we grow emotionally, our lives go through many changes. I am of the opinion our work should grow with us. Of course it’s fine to do the same thing over and over again, especially if you have a large audience base that has developed a taste for a particular outing but to actually evolve as an artist one has to take a risk sometimes and step out of their comfortable boundaries.

While a great deal of my work is in some way inspired by biomorphic shapes and other elements found in nature I used to mostly confine myself to producing and displaying artwork purely intended for indoor exposure. As I started to use more and more natural materials in my works, I started to think about the possibility of expanding the stage so to say.

I was part of an exhibition for which I had made a new artwork named ‘Terra Mandragora’, a multipart hanging installation in a former abbey that stood in a heavily forested area. At the end of the exhibition whilst uninstalling the artwork I decided to venture out into the woods instead of packing everything back into my car.
As it turns out, nature was able to provide so many interesting spots to display and photograph the artwork in ways that would be very hard to pull off in an indoor setting where you are usually very restricted in the way you are allowed to hang or install your work.

After this initial attempt I found myself more and more wanting to go outside and present my artwork in more unusual ways. The contrast between the natural green and brown tones found outside and the vibrant shades of fiery colors that are often present in my work seem to really work in my favor. As the artworks are usually organically shaped, instead of sticking out like a sore thumb, they gain an air of mysticism and seem to form a strange symbiotic role in the outdoors landscape.

Of course stepping outside is not as easy as just pulling up to a location and setting up your work. The weather conditions have to be right, you have to be able to physically haul your work to remote areas and find a way to install using any anchors that nature provides. As I’m usually photographing several different spots in one go it also means cleaning any leaves and twigs off the artwork per shot and face other challenges in the more unpredictable conditions met outside.

For me, that is just part of the learning curve and I feel I’m just starting to scratch the surface of what can be achieved when you force yourself onto a new setting.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I knew I wanted to be involved in Art from a young age. I’ve always loved to create and when the time came to choose a field of study it was an easy choice for me.

My majors are actually more based in painting and its various techniques such as Buon fresco, Sgraffito and Murals.
Along the way I found myself more and more interested in textile arts, initially trying out painted and mounted layered silk pieces and trying out all types of natural fibers. The desire to advance my work from a 2d to a more 3dimensional approach allowed me to experiment with a multitude of sculptural materials, culminating in having developed a personal and more unique way of creating large scale 3dimensional installations as well as smaller miniature works.

I like to push the boundaries of what can be achieved and don’t restrict myself on the same techniques and shapes over and over again.

As for the future, I’ll be taking on an exciting new project in fall this year where I will be doing a residency project in the UK with a renowned partner famous for its rich history with textile materials and I will learn to weave on traditional looming machines whilst trying to put a personal spin on the results.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Whilst it can be a touchy subject, I feel feedback and discussion are an important drive for any artist. Not just being content in putting up an artwork and calling it a day, I like to be present during an exhibition to talk to and engage visitors but I also like to take a step back and observe them experiencing an artwork on their own merits.

Many people can’t help themselves wanting to touch my work due to the materials used which can be a fun observation in itself seeing who can restrain themselves and those who sneak in a quick or sometimes even extensive feel.

Art should be challenging and engaging and it is always a pleasure achieving those results.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

If you want to know how to support artists and creatives around you, I feel the answer is actually quite simple. While funding and monetary aids are naturally a great way of backing an artist, keep in mind it is your feedback and an open dialogue that bring new opportunities to artists.

Attend art shows and exhibitions, talk to the artist, don’t be afraid to bring your children as we need to keep creativity alive and healthy in a society dominated by screens and an increasing need for AI supported answers and processes.

As a species, being creative and being able to express ourselves through visual and auditory arts are a huge parts of what makes us human. Like or dislike, approve or disapprove but never be afraid to go out and enjoy art and realise every now and then what our world would be like without it. I think everyone will realise, we need art and artists to push our dreams into the reality we shape for ourselves.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://monikaloster.com
• Instagram: @monipwni
• Linkedin: monikaloster

Image Credits
Monika Loster