Meet Whitney Stansell | Visual Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Whitney Stansell and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Whitney, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Just being an artist is risky. Making work for others to look at, scrutinize, hopefully connect with and love is a vulnerable practice. In my art practice I am interested in telling the stories that have shaped me, my history, the neighborhoods and environments that I live in, and the people that surround me. For the past several years, I have worked more and more with paper. Paper is a common material used everyday in the most quotidian of jobs, yet it has a deep history as an art making material. I am interested in the simplicity in which paper works to communicate, record, and preserve memories. It is versatile, malleable, and recyclable. It is fragile and vulnerable, yet can stand the test of time. My most recent body of work introduced a new way of working for me. The body of work is called Flower Gathering, and is comprised of cut, collaged, and painted paper. I explore a more metonymical mode of storytelling through collections of flowers. I started thinking of the meaning attached to flowers, the thought behind gathering them and giving them, and how they act as markers of time; whether it’s the formal bouquets of events, or the sweet offering my youngest son brings me to mark every Spring, nested in a simple mason jar. These ideas are reflected in my newest work, along with a tribute to the friendship of women who (particularly in the South), give each other flowers often for no particular reason. These are simple offerings in a jelly jar or milk glass but it’s a gift of affection and connection. Looking back over the last year, this body of work seems like such a natural step for me, yet at the time I was unsure and felt the risk and excitement of pursuing a new body of work! As with anything, practice engenders growth, so the more risks I take artistically, the more willing I am to explore new subjects. To grow as an artist, or in life, you cannot stay on safe ground!

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
It’s exciting to look back over the last (almost two decades) and see how my work has developed. My senior thesis exhibition at SCAD was all cut paper collage; even the paper itself was part newsprint (that I knew over time would fade and change) referencing the way our memories transmute given the proper duration. I am interested in how memories work like a collage; layer placed upon layer, and seeing those interactions that result in the creation of new narratives. Like memory, collage is a multifaceted art form that assembles disparate elements into a cohesive whole, blurring the lines between reality and imagination. Just as memories fade and evolve over time, collages can capture the essence of fleeting moments, preserving fragments of personal history and inviting reflection on the complex tapestry of our experiences. In both memory and collage, I explore the power of remembrance, the art of reconstructing the past, and the ability to uncover profound meaning in the final work of art. During graduate school I had the opportunity to apprentice with Nene Humphrey in Brooklyn, NY. My time with her had a profound impact on my studio practice and my understanding of what it means to be a working artist. Working alongside Nene, watching her meticulous attention to detail, learning how her work very much spoke to her love of family, inspired me both technically and conceptually. I think most artists would tell you that they HAVE to make work. It is part of who they are, of how they are made – we are made to be creative. It is not easy to be an artist, it is a vulnerable and wonderful life.
I am incredibly proud to have received many grants and support along the way; a New York Studio Residency at The Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts, Hambidge Residency, Atlanta Printmakers Studio Emerging Arts Residency, The Georgia Society of Contemporary Painters Visiting Graduate Artist, at the Lamar Dodd School of Art, a Forward Arts Foundation Grant Recipient, (along with my husband Micah) the Herradura Art Prize, FilmMakers in Residence – Atlanta Film Society, Artist in Residence Georgia Institute of Technology. And most recently I was a part of the National Museum for Women in the Arts – Women to Watch exhibition, which chose women who worked with (you guessed it!) Paper. I am so grateful for the support and recognition of these incredible institutions.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I love to find pockets of nature in Atlanta, and be outside as much as possible! Hopefully my friends are visiting when the weather is nice and sunny, and we will find ourselves basking in the sun, looking at art, and eating great food! In planning a full day of fun I would have to take friends along the Chattahoochee river to walk, run, or hike before breakfast and then go have coffee (my favorite drink!) at Chattahoochee Coffee Company, all within walking distance from each other! If my friends were not too worn out, I would take them biking on the Beltline and into Piedmont Park, grabbing lunch at the cafe in the middle of the park. And! If it is summer time we would go for a swim at the Piedmont Park pool.. My favorite spot, the lazy river! If we kept going on the beltline we would eventually find ourselves at Whitespace Gallery, where I am proudly represented, and where you can always see incredible art work! I am always amazed that in a city of 6 million I do not go anywhere without running into someone I know! I think the Atlanta art community is incredibly supportive of one another, and that might be the reason for seeing so many familiar faces!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My husband Micah Stansell is my partner in all things; and everything I do is in some way a collaboration with him. Micah is my biggest fan and toughest critic. For all of the work I am making Micah listens, responds, and gives me incredibly valuable feedback and ideas. We met in college, both cross country athletes and art majors, we had so many classes together and naturally fell into collaborating and encouraging each other’s art practice.

My mom is also an integral part of my desire to make art work, growing up she always told us stories of her childhood as a first generation Irish-Italian growing up in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. I grew up in a big family of 7 siblings and was homeschooled before it was all that common. My mom was my original inspiration – a natural storyteller who shared stories of her upbringing. My work is rooted in exploring how my memories were shaped by her narratives. I am influenced by the rich southern tradition of storytelling.

I am very grateful for the education I received from SCAD Atlanta. I am so grateful to be part of a community that continues to mentor and support me as I progress in my career. I am still in contact with fellow graduates and professors, and we are huge fans of one another!

Website: whitneystansell.com

Instagram: @whitneystansell

Facebook: Whitney Stansell

Image Credits
Courtesy of the Artist