Joy Miess’ art relies on memory and nostalgia, translating moments, conversations, feelings, and intimate thoughts into mixed media artwork. An illustrator and painter, her work might remind us of Jean-Micheal Basquiat – an affinity she doesn’t renounce.
“My work is in response to my day-to-day, conversations, relationships, family etc – all these things make their way into my art,” she relayed in an interview with Varoom. “There’s a certain order that my work has to be read to be understood, and the repeat symbology holds a story that’s unique to my life experiences.”
“Bringing nostalgic feelings into the work I create is part of my character,” she adds. “Naturally, I find myself reminiscing or trying to remember past events and conversations in order to strengthen the memory. I forget stories and key elements all the time, so to be able to turn these memories – many of which don’t have photographs documenting them – into artworks, adds permanence to the stories that I value.”
With a growing audience on Instagram, her work has also been exhibited at galleries like Beers London Gallery and Office&Gallery Los Angeles. She has also created public artwork along the Southbank as part of LDN WMN, a project curated by Tate Collective.
Talking about the artistic process itself, Miess says that her research starts by spending time looking through old films and photographs at home or images from her phone, which then develops into hours spent reading online.
“By the end of this, I usually have an idea in mind and can turn this into written notes and scribbles,” she explains. “I reflect on what I’ve found and make a rough thumbnail drawing. From there I start collecting textures, paper, and material to build the composition. To this collage of pieces, I start adding layers of text using thoughts, feelings, and words from the notes I’ve jotted on my phone and create line drawings that build a story.”
Take a look at some highlights from her Instagram page and follow her for more.
