Kit Mizeres’ new body of work ‘Farewell Transmission’ is like a vividly beautiful and bizarre dream – a dream we should all heed! I can relate to Kit’s feelings of anxiety around the value of her work, and how it is perceived by others. Kit uses her artwork to express her recent physical journey and that of the spirit through the symbolism and mythology woven into her beautiful and evocative oil paintings. Art is forever a projection of our true hearts – this is why it touches each of us so deeply, because we can see aspects of our own journey, struggles and triumphs within the work. Parts of ourselves reflected in the narrative.
Personally Kit’s work overall, and this new body of work in particular, speaks to my deep desire to change the world for the better – to shift our focus from the never ending consumerism which has become a behemoth that so many of us bow down to without even noticing. Changing to a world where we can, and do, live in symbiosis with the natural world and its creatures. Kit’s work touches on this deep desire through her ability to intertwine the human animal with the non human, and through this symbiosis each is empowered by the other. We see a beautiful new utopia in her work. Kit has created a beautiful, unique, and evocative oeuvre which if considered speaks to the deep places within our true hearts. I look forward to seeing where Kit’s journey takes her.
“Farewell Transmission” is a body of work meant to serve as a vehicle that heavily reflects the anxiety, loneliness and often very mundane aspects of my time spent living on the road this past year. I am in a constant state of departure, I have come to realize, and am no stranger to saying my farewells at this point in my life. I wanted to transmute all of those disquieting and conflicting emotions experienced during my many moments of uncertainty and attempts of self-reliance and understanding.” ~ Kit Mizeres
‘Farewell Transmission’ is on view at Arch Enemy Arts in Philadelphia until 28 June.
Kit Mizeres
“Farewell Transmission is a next chapter in her nomadic journey, digging deeper into themes of solitude and self-reliance. In this collection moments seem a little richer, and Kit’s personal symbolism and mythology seems more defined, as she balances excitement with uncertainty, finds familiarity amongst strangers, and seeks confidence in resilience, adaptation, and the vast amount of inner resources we possess while finding moments of humanity and pieces of yourself while living life along a journey without a destination.” Patrick Shillenn, Arch Enemy Arts
One of the new editorial’s in Beautiful Bizarre Magazine – the SNAPSHOT Q&A asks multiple artists the same questions. This format is wonderfully insightful as we get a peek into the hearts, minds and practices of different creatives working across different mediums and styles.
I asked Kit a mix of the SNAPSHOT questions from both the March issue and current June issue of Beautiful Bizarre Magazine below. Enjoy!
“Inward Refugee”[oil on panel, 5 x 7”]
Art is a visual language, what are you hoping to communicate to the viewer through your work?
To be completely honest, I’m hoping not too much! Kidding.. sort of. I can be an awfully shy person, and I always manage to embarrass myself rather frequently. And because I find myself so embarrassing, I find this vulnerable extension of myself, being my art, to also be quite embarrassing at times! You would think that writing about my work, as opposed to talking about it face to face with my viewers, would make it easier, but it’s still quite a hurdle for me! Every individual piece of art I make has its own backstory relating to a specific moment I’ve experienced on a personal level. But I do enjoy using a lot of symbolism in relation to folklore, universal symbolism and also a touch of my own personal symbols I generally frequent, so I don’t think the content of my work is entirely ambiguous. And I do seriously appreciate it when onlookers can relate or understand some of the art, and I find it quite rewarding when they reach out to tell me of their impressions. But there are some components here and there that I still enjoy keeping all to myself. All in all, my work is what I like to describe to as my own “personal mythology.” It’s simply an extension of myself and the personal experiences I’ve gained from wandering aimlessly through this life of mine, so far.
“Departing The Body” [oil on panel, 16 x 20″]
What do you hope to leave behind in the world through your art?
My dad always talked about how the purpose of life is to extend your non-physical being into this world. To reach out and touch others in some way, shape or form. We, as creatives, have the easiest solution to that idea, because we are already expressing ourselves through physical modes that can be seen and felt by the rest of the world. Ultimately, I just hope to achieve absolute honesty and a true sense of self through my artwork, and to eventually create work that indicates no heavy influence on anything other than myself alone.
“Taurobolium” [oil on panel, 11 x 14″ ]
“All the work in this series focuses on entirely different moments of a recent and lengthy adventure of mine, and all equally hold a great deal of importance to me. But I could go ahead and mention “Taurobolium,” which seems to have gained a lot inquiries lately. The taurobolium is an ancient Roman ritual that involves the sacrificing of a bull to the gods, with the intention to grant renewal and vitality to the people. In a way, this painting to me is a sort of “good luck” ritual, a statement of transition in my life. Because my art can be very meditative and time consuming to make, I often consider the act of creating to be its own ritual in a sense, and that’s what this painting came to be. It’s meant to be a symbol and ritual of good luck for my next big life change to come.
Anyway, the image contains a somewhat anthropomorphic bull who is holding a two-headed chicken. The bull is a symbol of the severed bull head taken from the taurobolium ritual, and is meant to bid good fortune to come. The chicken is meant to serve as a forked road, with two possible life paths to choose from. Even though each path will always bring about it’s own unique and inventible danger, hence the snake, only one path can be chosen, and will be the more fruitful one in the long-run. The glass heart full of water and irises is a common theme throughout my recent works, indicating the swell of inner resources within oneself, and the ability to cultivate growth from within.” ~ Kit Mizeres
What is the most challenging part about creating art for you?
I would say the most challenging obstacle for me as of lately is the fact that I am living out of a backpack now, and I have to limit the amount of materials I can work with. But it’s nice, because I have to make smaller works with simpler materials like watercolor and graphite, and I can therefore work on more projects at a time as opposed to focusing more time and energy on larger works. I also enjoy the challenge of having to work with the local resources of each new setting I find myself in, since I’m in a new location every few weeks. For example, it took me a couple of hours here the other day in France to find someone who spoke enough English in one of the many galleries and art supply stores I walked into to finally tell me where I can go to scan some recent drawings I made. It was super frustrating in the best way possible, and of course, it was very rewarding in the end when I found the place at long last!
“Oasis From Within” [oil on panel, 11 x 14″]
Did you do formal study in the Arts? Did you find it helpful or a hindrance?
Yes! I graduated two years ago from the Columbus College of Art and Design, with a focus on illustration. I think it certainly helped me to examine and consider my many options as an artist, and I learned a few savvy technical skills with digital media, especially, which come in handy still. But ultimately, I felt like I didn’t have the opportunity to really grow into myself until after I graduated and finally had the time to focus on what I wanted to do. I’m now making up for those four lost years spent in college, and am trying to catch up with myself.
“Swallowed By The Moon” [oil on panel, 14 x 11″]
Who is your biggest Art Throb and why?
Femke Hiemstra all the way! I can’t tell you enough how much her work moves me. It’s all so beautiful, it leaves me gasping for air every time I see her art. It’s so otherworldly, and puts me in an emotional headspace like no other.
“Scentless Lullaby, Sugary Sweet Anemone” [oil on panel, 12 x 12″]
“I Had A Dream of the Sea, the Sky, the Trees… and the Wind” [oil on panel, 14 x 11″]
“Rough Landing” [oil on panel, 6 x 6″]
Discover more of Kit Mizeres’ work on her website, Instagram or Facebook feed.
