AMY DIENER, is an international contemporary artist based in Bangkok. Diener has showcased her paintings in the United States, Thailand, Singapore, and Germany. Her upcoming exhibition includes: Colors of New Zealand (Kalwit Gallery- Thailand, April 2017).
Diener and her artwork was the cover story for Wanderlust: Expat Life & Style Magazine – Thailand (August / September 2015.) Diener’s work was selected for the Saatchi Art “Making Faces: New Portraits” collection. Her artwork has also been featured in Bangkok Post, The Journal News (New York), Global Living, art4d.asia, Expat Life, Bangkok 101, Bangkok Asia City Guide, AngloInfo, and LeParisPhuket.
As a featured Asia Art Tours Artist, we reached out to Amy to chat about her work, our conversation is below.
AAT: Can you describe your work from how it began to its current form? How do you see it changing in the future?
AMY D: I started painting seriously when I was seventeen years old. I focused my artistic energy on painting portraits, with a goal of capturing the essence of the individual depicted. My style was influenced by the pixelated portraits of Chuck Close. As I got older, during my art studies at university, I continued painting portraits, however using bold brushstrokes. I moved to Bangkok in July of 2013 after university and my art changed dramatically. I continued the subject of portraiture, however my style evolved. I began representing the cheeks of faces through the form of hearts. I did this to bring out the vibrancy and energy of the cheeks to illustrate love and positive feelings. I was very inspired by the colors of Thailand.
AAT: What are some of the artistic/philosophic inspirations for your style?
My artistic inspirations are the various artists listed above, as well as the colors from my travels.
AMY D: I described my color choices as the colors of Thailand- emulating the beautiful and bright temples, taxis, motorcycles, malls, apartments, leaves, and flowers of Siam. A year later, I got accepted to be in an art fair in Singapore called the Art Apart Fair. My partner at the time was creating a whole series of mandalas for the fair, and I too started to paint mandalas as I found the process to serve as a form of therapeutic centering. As time moved forward, I stumbled upon many dot artists such as Elspeth Mclean, Andrew Forge, Roy Lichtenstein, Barbara Takenaga, and Yayoi Kusama. I started to incorporate dots in my mandalas because I found it to be a meditative experience.
In 2015, I started graduate school studying visual arts education with a focus in painting. By summer of 2016, I abandoned all brushstrokes, and just started using dots… in my artwork. The dot itself is balanced and centered, and I find the process to serve as a mindfulness painting practice. The process requires concentration and patience, allowing the mind to reach a state of “liminality”, a pause from life’s worries and stressors. I have been playing around with different compositions, and now I choose colors based on experiencing colors of my travels throughout Asia, mostly utilizing the color
AAT: What has been your best memory from Art in Bangkok?
AMY D: My best memory of art in Bangkok was being accepted into an exhibition at the Montien Hotel and the Queen’s Gallery where every year, Princess Soamsawali comes to meet the artists and see the show. I was the only foreigner in the show, however felt accepted and encouraged by the Thai artists. I curtsied and she politely shook my hand and said nice to meet you!