Loie Hollowell Makes Very Sexy Art

For her upcoming solo exhibit at Pace Palo Alto, artist Loie Hollowell—who’s originally from Northern California and now based in New York—enlists a deeply personal approach. All of the new works in Point of Entry, which opens Sept. 24, are meant to be viewed in pairs and reference sexual organs through her use of ancient symbols such as ogees, mandorlas and lingams.

Each bold, deeply saturated gurative painting is created by stretching Belgian linen over wood panels, then layering sculptor’s foam directly atop the canvas. The result? A uniquely three-dimensional surface that, when painted, Hollowell explains, “plays with the viewers’ sense of perception and creates an effect so subtle they won’t know where illusion and reality begin and end.” 

Though her practice is certainly sexually charged—“I didn’t realize how much I could get from my body,” she says—Hollowell abstracts and manipulates each painting to the point where the takeaway is intended to be open-ended. “I paint from very specific moments for me, but they don’t have to mean that to anyone else,” says Hollowell. “I just want to give visual pleasure to the viewer.” 229 Hamilton Ave.

Originally published in the September/October issue of Silicon Valley

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