“Art is the highest form of hope,” reads Rhea Ornias’ Instagram bio. “It was a quote from a German painter Gerhard Richter,” she explained in an interview with I Love Illustration., stating that art comforts, elates, and defies.
The Filipino-born, Australia-based fashion designer and artist draws portraits of women, shrouded in thought, that seem out of place and out of time. These illustrations are accompanied by poems, which she shares on Facebook.
“As an only child, illustrating and writing were my two great companions,” Ornias told I Love Illustration. “I only needed a sunroom (with some drizzle outside) on a soft sofa with a mug of hot choco in my hands.” Luckily, she found a way to combine her early passions, and nowadays accepts commissioned paintings.
“My poetry is about finding your authentic self, amidst chaos in this world,” she says. “I hope it will inspire self- love and courage not to sell out the dream. Life is more than being liked,” she reminds us.
Her fashion portraits indeed have a poetic quality about them. Take a look for yourself:
