Expert Guise artist: Tilda Swinton

Tracy Helgeson

Setting Sun
2009

Aunt Bettie Looks Like Margaret Thatcher
2009

So I found this artist through Pinterest of all places. I was first struck by the beautiful colour composition of the landscape picture pinned (not the same as the one pictured above), but as I went through her portfolio, I developed an even greater appreciation for her wit and the character depth she manages to draw out of what appear to be more-less flat images. Employing a red backdrop wash and a soft brushstroke that creates a dreamy-fuzzy surface, Helgeson's landscapes and portraits look like direct transfers of the artist's memories or dreams to the canvas. I love how she manages, through these seemingly simple techniques, to capture such complexity and warmth.

Adrian Piper

Adrian Piper critically and through creative forms of confrontational art made us think about the power as well as the ambiguity of race in its many manifestations.