AMP: Artists' Meeting Place and Resource Collective

http://www.anna-maly.com

Featured AMP Member Anna Maly, known on AMP as Laanni, has a broad set of artistic interests, including painting, crafts, and writing, but her photography has been most prominently featured on AMP so far. She's currently enjoying exploring how much her camera will do for her. If you send her your picture, she just might Warhol-ize it for you...if you're lucky...

Click here to see her photo galleries on AMP: http://www.pluginamp.com/network/image/tid/300

And read on to see what she says about herself and her art:

"I was born and raised in Moscow, Russia, where the regime insisted we all be alike, sing the same songs, wear the same school uniform, and buy the same furniture….We were not allowed to be unique, stand out, and express ourselves. Suppressing one's artistic abilities was common. Talented artists were often reduced to painting portraits of the Leaders and various Communist party or war heroism scenes. By the mid 1980s it became OK to be an abstract artist but I had already lost all the interest I had...until I moved to the US seven years ago. I am very happy to finally be able to spread my wings and share my art.

What kind of artist am I? One who is able to express thoughts, emotions, and visions in color and texture. No matter how seemingly simple the image may be, everyone who looks at it will have a different understanding of it. Some will find it disturbing, while others will see nothing but serenity. Some see happy, where others see sad. Different perspectives on my work is what I find the most fascinating.

I am currently working on a few new series. One of them is "Fruit's Adventures in Space" where a grapefruit is traveling through the universe. There is no agenda, just the desire to have an experience - and thus is the story of my life...

Realistic images are too simple and leave no room for interpretation. If you look at a photograph, or a painting which looks like one, you can certainly feel the mood of the image, you can admire the composition, painting techniques, colors; you can even think of a story behind it. Yet since the image is clear and is so life-like you have no room for guessing what it may mean. It's like watching a movie vs. reading a book. That's why I am so interested in conveying the message in abstract form. So open your eyes and mind and enjoy my world of what I call Accelerated Reality."