Interview with Natalie Egger
Can you tell us about your journey into the world of art? What or who inspired you to pursue a career as an artist?
I was always interested in fine arts. Back in 2015 I began a collaboration with a social media friend, who was engaged highly in artsy stuff like writing, doodling and making music. Our collaboration ground was an Instagram account called “Tailored dreams”, where I complemented the writing of my friend with my photographical edits.
After that I was highly engaged in art photography, where I took pictures of random things in the city which caught my attention and afterwards merging different photos into something completely different.
In 2017 I began to visit several drawing courses, mostly figurative drawing and portrait drawing. Since then, drawing as well as painting is something I do on a regular basis.
In 2018 I joined the university of Applied Arts Vienna for a master study, where I made a deep dive into street art and wrote my master thesis about ““The influence of social networks on the art movement Street Art & their impact on the level of popularity of female street artists – by the example of Instagram” in 2019. In 2020 my first artbook ““[visual_diGITaL]_aRt|concepts_| 111 selected artworks by NataliE.” was published.
Since then, I was part of several group exhibitions in Europe and Asia and of three small street art projects. Beside drawing, painting and photography I sometimes write experimental texts and occasionally shoot short films.
I am inspired by random things that I encounter by coincidence during my strolls through the city or during my travels when it comes to my digital artworks. My acrylic paintings as well as pencil drawings reflect my fascination with the human face as well as the body and their various forms of expression. I find inspiration for my motifs in dance, performance theater and fashion.
Could you walk us through your creative process? How do you go from an initial idea to a finished piece?
"To be creatively active means for me to find/invent my own track beyond the mind."
This quote of mine sums up what so-called "making art" is about for me: it's about creating something for the sake of creating, in the spirit of l'art pour l'art. It's about the process of artistic creation not so much about the result. Since I do a lot of mental work in my day job, I enjoy having the freedom in the artistic process not to have to think about the result, not to think at all while creating. To turn off my head and to let myself be guided by impressions that are brought to me from the outside world, to then be processed internally and finally to be brought back to the outside as an expression of my inner life.
How have your style and techniques evolved over time? Are there any artists or movements that have particularly influenced your work?
The evolvement of my art can be described as a circle, I began with abstract motifs painting with acrylics on canvas many years ago, discovered then patterns, structures and other haptic surfaces by randomly taking photos, often close-ups, from my environment, afterwards I had (and still have) a strong focus on the human body and the human face expressed in various pencil drawings and paintings on canvas closing the circle by digitally fusing photos of my surroundings with my drawings and paintings.
To sum it up I think my work is not one dimensional; it is extremely varied. It tackles with different kind of motifs and art media like digital art, photography, pencil drawings, acrylic painting, writing and street art. I would say it is a symbiotic combination of the analog and the digital world.
Which artists influence you most?
There are no specific artists; except maybe when it comes to my portraits the Alte Meister/Old Masters - but more I am fascinated by patterns and structures and close ups of everyday life and everyday things.
Being featured in various art books and magazines is a significant accomplishment. How do you feel this recognition has impacted your career and artistic journey? Has it influenced the way you approach your art?
Being featured in books and magazines is a great opportunity and chance to get my art brought to a wider audience, however it has not influenced my process of creation. But I admit that it is interesting to observe how curators, art lovers, friends and family prefer artworks of mine which I would never choose to be my favorites. So, art is always a very private, very personal, very intimate relationship with the viewer this I have learned so far through publishing my artworks.
Of all the projects you have worked on, do you have a personal favorite? Can you share the story behind it?
I don’t have a favorite one, but my latest project focused on a honeycomb, which I brought home from a trip to a beehive. The photo of the honeycomb has been merged with other snapshots, I’ve made randomly, and with one of my pencil drawings: the outcome was color-explosive. I loved the way the honeycomb was placed in the center of each artwork: the beauty of nature was so present even though I used very bright and intense colors with a strong focus on the modern, artificial world.
How has technology impacted your work, especially in fields like digital art or photography?
Technology has impacted my process of creation a lot: As I use my randomly taken snaps from my travels and my strolls through my home city as basis for my digital artworks. I don’t use a proper photo camera; I take these photos only with my mobile camera. By merging the so taken photos with my pencil drawings, my acrylic paintings or with other snaps, something completely new evolves. In this process I don’t know the outcome before, it is not an intentional procedure with an exact aim but more a sub- or even unconscious development.
What advice would you give to aspiring artists who wish to follow a path similar to yours?
My advice is to create for the sake of creativity (according to the principle “l’art pour l’art”). Don’t think about what others might say about your artworks, it is all about your composition process that is what really counts. It is your very own creative path that matters, nothing else.
Are there any upcoming projects or goals you are particularly excited about? Where do you see your artistic journey taking you in the next few years?
That is a very difficult question to answer as there are no specific projects or goals on the horizon right now. I don’t follow a specific plan, my art doesn’t follow a specific plan. It is more that my art flows out of me. I am most creative during my art composing process while I don’t think. The moment I become top-heavy I get lost, and my art would not be my art, it would be something made in a very mechanic, somehow soulless and creativity-less way.
