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Writer's pictureEmily & Natalie

Tess Michalik


Brooklyn based artist Tess Michalik creates beautiful floral paintings that remind us of vintage wallpaper.

Her juicy oil paintings are thick with grooves and brush marks. Subtle background designs break up the floral surfaces, and each petal is thickly laid on top of the one below. Both the background and blooming foreground explore pattern, with stripes sitting below flowers pushed into pleasant and often repeating forms. Machalik breaks outside of the traditional rectangle frame, creating circular works that somehow create an even stronger reference to old-fashioned interior styles.

Tess Michalik's paintings spill over the edge with energy, and her titles just add to their appeal. "Untitled (Pill Popper)" and "Bitchin'" give their floral surfaces a charming edge.

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