On a Journey in Color with Stephanie Borg

Stephanie Borg is a self-taught artist and graphic designer from Malta. Her professional practice as a graphic designer for about 20 years, both in her native Malta and overseas, has enabled her natural sensitivity to and professional handling of colour and line to mature artistically.

Stephanie combines her understanding of color and linear form to develop a series of pattern designs. She blends her graphic design experience with her love for paper to create the design of various fine paper products.

Recently, she was featured as "Tuesday Designer" by "Yasmintoo", a US web site that celebrates the art of surface design textiles, interview

Q: You have just re-designed and launched your "new" web site. What are the new features or elements?
Stephanie: The overall look is still very clean and neat. However I have included more visual elements and many more sections. Apart from the new work uploaded under ‘Ink Drawings’, I have included sections featuring my oil paintings, pattern designs, prints and fine paper products. Under patterns, one can click to view the patterns as a wall hanging canvas. Other new sections feature my latest news, my profile and where to find my merchandise, amongst others.

The new look of my website is also a reflection of my new work and development over the past 5 years.

Q: Your passion for color translates into a series of art works that are the fundamental images of nature and color, please expand?
Stephanie: Inspiration is everywhere! However certain subjects seem to speak louder to me than others and I feel naturally drawn to them. It is not something that I can explain logically – it is an impulse that urges me to choose one color over another and the same impulse that directs me to choose my subject.

Q: Do you get up in the middle of the night and put down some of jumping ideas?
Stephanie: No, I don’t! When I get ideas in the middle of the night, I just let them flow and develop on their own. Luckily, I tend to still remember them in the morning!

Q: You are a self taught artist and have absorbed and practiced different styles over the years, how has your styles enveloped?
Stephanie: I can still remember the moment, back in 2002, when I felt the need to paint once again, after not having touched a brush for quite a long time. The feeling is still very vivid – it was daunting and scary yet so very exciting, thrilling even, to be faced with a big blank white sheet of paper screaming at me to start! The first piece that I did back then was around 70cm x 80cm – not a small format for a piece executed in inks. The other 2 pieces that followed were more or less of a similar size.

I needed to express a suppressed energy, even the subject matter reflected this need to grow, bloom and develop myself. Over the years, I experienced different cultures and life situations, and these brought with them either practical changes -like when I couldn’t get my ink colors and resolved to experiment with oils - or unexpected ones.

My living experiences in the Sultanate of Oman of nearly 6 years drew out my passion for color and pattern which manifested itself in my vibrant drawings of the Omani people. Most of the depictions of my Omani subjects are of a relatively small format, so much so that they can be called miniatures. Over the years my artwork has become even more detailed and intricate, but this doesn’t mean that my next piece couldn’t take a totally different approach – I am totally free to express myself and my state of being in whichever way I prefer!

This is a luxury that I can afford as an artist!

Q: There is a love for abstract elements, but also employs a style that let`s the viewer see the relationship between that painting and graphics, can you elaborate?
Stephanie: In my graphic design projects, I need to transform my initial creative concept into a very precise artwork. When viewing my art pieces, one can see that my brushstrokes are also very linear, defined and calculated, and my subjects are easy to identify – my background as a professional graphic designer is thus very evident. However, this form of expression comes very naturally to me – it is not something that I preplan. I do not feel I am being rigid at all when I paint – I feel very free as I draw layer upon layer of ink - which is a very fluid medium – to achieve a very solid and dense result. I like this contrast.

There’s also the part of me that is forever fascinated with pattern which is very evident in my depiction of Omani subjects. When I’m painting or drawing, the artist in me is more prominent than the graphic designer, however I do not consciously distinguish between them as they are one and the same person.

Q: Design, colour, sketching, creative imagination, how they relate and complement?
Stephanie: These all form part of "my world". An important element to these is awareness – awareness of the things and life around me, and awareness of my own state of being. Awareness helps me observe and observation influences my thinking and triggers my imagination and creativity, which in turn gives shape to my designs, sketches, etc.

Q: Malta - the island of your birth -  is never far from your thoughts. This spring you participated in a collective exhibition there entitled "Square", would you like to tell more about and responses you received? 
Stephanie: I was in Malta when the call for artists was announced and I submitted two pieces for the collective, which were accepted by the curator. It was exciting to exhibit once again in my homeland, after an absence of five years. It was also flattering to find out that some people still remembered my first solo exhibition which I held in 2004.

Q: Your artwork is a feast of colors. Let me ask you, what is the "color" of your world?
Stephanie: When something sparks my imagination, attracts my attention and sets my brain spinning, I feel alive. When I’m being creative, I feel alive. Enriching experiences, traveling, stimulating conversations, inspiring moments,…these all contribute to color my world in different hues!

Q: You say it is color which urges you to start a new artwork, can you elaborate?
Stephanie: For me each color has a voice, and my choice of color is the voice I want to express myself in. Usually I do not have a clear idea of what my finished piece is going to look like but I would know what colors I would want to choose.

I express myself in color first, the form is secondary!

Q: You say you are filled with confidence and insecurity, please explain?
Stephanie: With each piece I try to challenge myself to go a step further, to push myself out of my comfort zone and explore my own limitations. A finished piece means that I have managed to discover something new about myself and this gives me a good feeling. On the other hand, each blank canvas represents a new challenge, which is very exciting and daunting at the same time!

Q: Your inspiration is everywhere, what happens next when you find your inspiration?
Stephanie: It is very exciting when I feel inspired! Sometimes I just sketch and let the creative juices flow, at other times I go straight to my colors and start the piece! It depends: sometimes the inspiration needs to be developed and explored, but at other times it doesn’t take me much till I put my colors onto paper.

Q: How do state of being, choice of color, medium and form are related and or complement?
Stephanie: My state of being determines if and how I relate to my surroundings and to myself. Sometimes I can be so immersed in my own emotions and thoughts that my surroundings do not matter much. At other times I am more open to life around me and therefore I experience my existence differently. However, there is always an awareness that helps me assess and redefine myself. It is like there’s a part of me that looks within and another part that looks outside of me. All this affects the ‘voice’ that I want to express myself in, i.e. my choice of color, which in turn also determines form and medium.

Q: You do not like to see your work labeled, because you find it limiting. How best would you describe it? 
Stephanie: As a vibrant exploration of color with minute attention to detail.

Q: You lived in different places, Bahamas, USA, Italy and are "a citizen of the world". Yet the Sultanate of Oman had directly influenced your work and has enriched your love for color, patterns and texture, would you like to share some of your experiences and influences?
Stephanie: Oman was nothing like I ever experienced before. Even though I had previously been to big countries and also to other Arab countries, Oman made a particular impact on me – for some reason I was touched! The immense open spaces gave me a sense of freedom, and the big solid mountains made me feel grounded and protected. The sea was also very easily accessible where I lived, which was also a blessing because I do not think I can live anywhere far away from the sea! There’s also the immensity of the desert!!! How many countries can boast of having sea, desert and mountains all within reach? And then there are the people: the Omanis are very friendly and hospitable, they make you feel welcome and are also very generous.

All these factors contributed to my inspiration. However, my biggest source of influence was the traditional attire of the Omani people, especially the women. Never before had I experienced such an eclectic mix of vibrant color and pattern – what a sight! I used to catch myself staring at the ladies in all their radiance – simply fascinating! The traditional dress of the Omani ladies continues to inspire me even now, eight years after I first arrived in the Sultanate. Since then, I have been more daring and courageous in my choice of colors - I have learnt to take risks, experiment more and use unusual color combinations that are unfamiliar to the Western eye. Oman has helped me to use color and pattern more boldly and daringly.

Q: Any forthcoming projects, undertakings you wish to share?
Stephanie: I have just produced my new 2010 Calendar Cards, which I sell through selected outlets and representatives in Oman, Dubai, Malta and Australia. I am also marketing my patterns as wall-hanging canvases – it’s a way to have affordable art which is not mass produced and that also offer a certain degree of exclusivity – the final piece can be quite unique because clients can consult with me for different color combinations to suit their own particular size requirements, taste and decor.

Early next year I will be working on the design concept of a book for the Centre for Omani Dress, entitled: "The Traditional Dress of Oman", written by Julia Al Zadjali and Dr Gillian Vogelsang-Eastwood. This is a very exciting project for me as I’ll be having the opportunity to work very closely with the subject that has offered me so much inspiration!

Another exciting opportunity will be a collective exhibition in which I will be participating next year in May in Dubai, held under the patronage of the Consulate General of Malta.

Final thoughts, wishes…?
Thank you for this opportunity! I welcome any feedback and comments.

Thank you
 
Stephanie Borg can be contacted at steffiborg.hotmail.com

FROM REVIEWS
Stephanie Borg's first solo exhibition can easily be described as a delicate expression of color. Her paintings are executed in colored inks built up in layers. Painted on water color paper, the numerous levels of paint often smooth the rough texture of the paper. The medium allows the artist to be expressive and its time-consuming nature challenges her as an artist.

Stephanie was thrilled to be given the opportunity to show her work. For her, this was a dream come true, and she was still trying to get to grips with the reality of it all. She stressed that someone who paints cannot simply call himself an artist – passion, understanding and a flair for art is needed.
The Sunday Times of Malta 04

Image: Artwork by Stephanie Borg

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