Vahge - COLLAGIST OF THE ODD AND ELEGANT

Isječci iz magazina postaju glamurozno-operetna viktorijanska franken-steam-punk-noir noćna mora.

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Vahge’s Collages Of Elegant Victorian Ladies Are Fantastical Pictures

moray mair 

Vahge’s collages of elegant ladies placed in fantastical tableaux are wonderfully fresh pictures, a commingling of dreams, literature, music, theatre and classic portraiture underpinned by german expressionism and victorian culture.
What’s so exciting about these portraits is that Vahge sees them as characters, talks to them, gives them a story, a narrative, a life that imbues each construction with a vitality and a vulnerability. As she has says herself:

Women are strange creatures, they have a unique strength, fragility, beauty, ugliness, insanity, and complexity that is irresistible and intriguing. It feels natural for me to experiment with elements of fantasy on the female form in the characters of my work.

Storytelling is an integral part of Vahges process, each collage made from magazines, greeting cards, books and dolls that allude to the life of her characters, each fragment a window into a past that is rich and beautiful, romantic and whimsical. They are a celebration of oddity and elegance. - www.mutantspace.com














































Vahge
A self taught artist, Vahge moved to Brooklyn, NY in the fall of 2007, where she currently lives and works. Her collages have shown in London, New York, Los Angeles, and Santa Fe, NM. She has contributed album artwork for the Dresden Dolls, flyers for HEALTH, and artwork for the recent Katharine McPhee holiday album.
Vahge’s collages contrast the whimsical and romantic with unsettling aspects of reality. There is also often a hint of humor in her work. She incorporates elements of dreams, literature, music, theater, and classic portraiture, and draws heavily from the rich imagery of German expressionism and Victorian culture.
Usually crafted on a small scale, her work is highly detailed, using layers of paper to construct characters and scenes with precise proportion and depth. She focuses mainly on female characters, placing them center stage and exposing all their faults and unique beauty. In all her work, whether it be a sociopathic conjoined twin, a tragic clown, an embellished lady-in-waiting, or a chaste mistress, Vahge celebrates oddity with elegance.