Molly Bosley :: Artist Interview

One of our newest artists here at artstream is Molly Bosley. Molly has been part of our "Seasonal Travel" exhibition and we were so excited to see all the facets of her work on our walls and to meet her. She is truly a gem! Molly agreed to answer my questions and so here we go today with her interview... Molly Bosley from Boston, MA.

1. What is your earliest memory of art making?

I remember when I was three years old, I sat my favorite stuffed bunny down on a chair and drew it on a chalkboard. My mom said it was an exact replica.

2. What is your medium of choice? (s)

Paper. You can do so much with it. I am always trying to find new ways of using it and manipulating it. People think of paper as a flat surface and base for making the actual art on, I want to challenge that idea and go further with it.

3. What are your greatest inspirations for your work?

Pretty much anything old inspires me. When I go to yard sales and thrift stores, I don't just see a bunch of junk, I see objects for new projects. I love textures and patterns like on fabrics and rugs, rusty metal nuts, bolts and doodads. I think the things that catch my eye the most are silhouettes found in nature and natural objects like sticks, weeds, acorns, seashells , etc.

4. Who was the most influential person in your early art career?

My mom was probably the most influential person early on. She is an artist and always encouraged me to create things. What I remember most from my childhood was my mom telling me fairy tales and pointing out little things relating to color and shapes. These things all come back to my current interests.

5. What is a good art making day look like for you?

Waking up on the early side, getting myself a large iced coffee, sitting down for a good 6-8 hours and just getting things done. At the end of the day I would have a variety of things started and maybe a few finished.

6. Who are your favorite artists - living and dead?

Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele, Toulouse Lautrec, Monica Canilao, Brandi Strickland, Zak Smith, Eduardo Recife, Dasha Shishkin, Su Blackwell, Robert Rauschenberg, Brooks Salzwedel and so many others.

7. Words of wisdom that you would like to pass along?

Keep making it.

8. What art do you find really exciting right now?

All the paper cutting artists popping up!

9. Where do you see yourself with your art 5 years from now?

I see myself living in a house surrounded by trees, drinking fresh lemonade in a garden and making art every day.

10. Tell us a little about the process of your art.

When I'm making my collages, I usually cut out a whole bunch of images and surround myself with all of my materials and then just begin moving them around. For the paper cutting, it's a lot more complicated. There's a lot of planning the layout, image transferring and tracing the same images multiple times. Even though this process is so structured it's just as instinctual as my other art making.