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The images in the first painting are female artist icons, Frida Kahlo, Georgia O’Keeffe and Yayoi Kusama. They are strong female artists, who have overcome adversities and inspired generations of new artists. I painted frontal and profile portraits as I imagined them as young and aging. I’ve been greatly influenced by their art, their life, their struggles and their lasting contributions to the art world.

In the second painting there are images of two painted skulls on Frida Kahlo, a deer skull on Georgia O’Keeffe and a polka dot pumpkin on Yayoi Kusama. These are images that were prominently expressed in their art are all woven over the artists faces and can be seen subtlety.

I create intricate weavings of watercolor paintings - to complete this meticulous process, I paint two images, cut them into strips and then weave them together to produce an entirely different work of art. 

Abel Manalo

abelartsf@gmail.com