Art & Life with Ashley Gierke

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Gierke.

Ashley, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I’ve always considered myself an artist and feel deeply grateful to have a practice that over time has evolved to offer me different things. When I was young, it was a source for confidence and belonging, as I grew up it was a way to set myself apart, and over the past five years, it has been a place for healing, introspection, growth, and connection.

I took the traditional path of studying art in college and graduate school and have been making artwork since. My art has thankfully been well received and purchased by way of art shows, galleries, and commissions. Five years ago, I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I was 30 at the time, and that experience shifted my art practice from one that was essentially directionless to one with purpose. While recovering from a bilateral mastectomy, I discovered a love for drawing. It was a means to explore my grief, fear, and all of the other emotions that are packed into facing one’s mortality and learning to love a new body. After my eight-year relationship ended and my life regained some normalcy, I began exploring the strange (at that time and maybe even still…) world of online dating. This provided further material for my artwork as I explored my own patterns and insecurities and the highs and lows of intimate relationships.

Prior to getting sick, I worked primarily with paper and more recently have revisited it. Currently, I toggle between both mediums, depending on inspiration and demand. I’m feeling another shift on the horizon and look forward with excitement to the new ways my practice will evolve. Perhaps, a melding of the two mediums is in order.

Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I identify as an illustrator and a paper artist. Both mediums fulfill me in different ways and are representative of my personality. The illustration is a product of my introspective and sensitive nature and the colorful paper-cuts are more aligned with my playful, imaginative side.

I’ve created over 350 drawings through what has been a therapeutic process of self-exploration. I continually gravitate to this medium because of its ability to help me process my life. While I’m proud of my growing collection (it’s what I’d grab in a fire), the real bonus has been all of the people I’ve connected to because of them. The drawings have elicited stories from others who’ve struggled with self-love, trauma and/or trying experiences. Hearing that my work has meaning to others is the greatest accomplishment of my life and feels amazing. I am lucky to be on this particular path and to have this practice to help me make sense of it.

I have been working with paper for about twelve years. I love the medium because it feels like the perfect blend of qualities I appreciate about painting (color) and sculpture (texture) in one. I enjoy its dimensionality and form and the level of control I can have over it (I’m type-A in case you couldn’t tell). My paperwork is a bit more lighthearted and conceptually shallow than my drawings, yet I’m a believer that there is value in abstraction and beauty. There was a time when I was playing with the interaction between paper and colored shaving cream, I’ve made more little paper cacti than I can count, I’ve created animal portraits, dimensional compositions with formed paper cups and my favorite – paper insects. Folks that are self-proclaimed bug haters admit they have a soft spot for these, which has been really fun!

In your view, what is the biggest issue artists have to deal with?
I wouldn’t necessarily call this the biggest challenge, but with so many visuals at our fingertips these days with social media, it can feel overwhelmingly difficult to stand out from the vast landscape of fellow creators. From time to time I question, “why bother?” and then am pretty quickly brought back to the main motivation for being an artist – a love of making.

What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
I am selling prints of some of my drawings through my website (www.ashleygierke.com). My Instagram (@ashley_gierke) is the best place to see new work and follow progress. I also participate in quarterly group shows with the atxGALS – they’re super fun pop-up art events around Austin. Folks can support my work by either purchasing or sharing it with their community – both are sincerely appreciated!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ashleygierke.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: @ashley_gierke

Image Credit:
Personal photo by Cedric Guerin, Artwork by Ashley Gierke

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