Elena Disabato
I am a painter and mixed media artist living in the Logan Square neighborhood of my hometown, Chicago. Following college at Syracuse University (BFA ’00) with a semester in Florence, Italy studying Renaissance painting, I lived in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood. I curated the fine art portion of bi-monthly “Art & Science” events at Galapagos Art Space until 2006 when I returned to Chicago.
Three of my pieces were shown in 2007 at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago at the Sustainable Architecture Chicago exhibit in tandem with Bruce Mao’s Massive Change exhibit.
Following that show, I took a hiatus from my art to forge a career marketing for architects which proved to stifle my ability to create artwork. In 2018 I re-booted my creative practice, and have since been featured in multiple international live and digital exhibits/competitions, national art publications, and local galleries / markets.
My dream is to make a sustainable living through creating visual work that resonates with the viewer on a deep subconscious level that leaves them with a sense of wonder and beauty.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
Combining aesthetic beauty with the unexpected is something I strive for in my art. The unexpected could be a sheen, a hallucination, an octopus.
Whether a piece is representational of a specific subject or demonstrates an abstracted concept, my goal for creating art is twofold:
• Allow the viewer to feel connected with and intrigued, regardless of subject matter or technique
• Put something original into the world that answers or investigates subconscious questions, leaving a lasting conscious impression of beauty and satisfaction
I am a painter and mixed media artist living in the Logan Square neighborhood of my hometown, Chicago. Following college at Syracuse University (BFA ’00) with a semester in Florence, Italy studying Renaissance painting, I lived in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood. I curated the fine art portion of bi-monthly “Art & Science” events at Galapagos Art Space until 2006 when I returned to Chicago.
Three of my pieces were shown in 2007 at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago at the Sustainable Architecture Chicago exhibit in tandem with Bruce Mao’s Massive Change exhibit.
Following that show, I took a hiatus from my art to forge a career marketing for architects which proved to stifle my ability to create artwork. In 2018 I re-booted my creative practice, and have since been featured in multiple international live and digital exhibits/competitions, national art publications, and local galleries / markets.
My dream is to make a sustainable living through creating visual work that resonates with the viewer on a deep subconscious level that leaves them with a sense of wonder and beauty.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
Combining aesthetic beauty with the unexpected is something I strive for in my art. The unexpected could be a sheen, a hallucination, an octopus.
Whether a piece is representational of a specific subject or demonstrates an abstracted concept, my goal for creating art is twofold:
• Allow the viewer to feel connected with and intrigued, regardless of subject matter or technique
• Put something original into the world that answers or investigates subconscious questions, leaving a lasting conscious impression of beauty and satisfaction
$1,130.00
Oil and swarovski crystals on canvas.
20x32"
Part of “The Seafood Series” triptych. Each canvas was fully self-stretched, sized, primed and prepared for hanging. My had was used for reference where a sea anemone slowly consumes that which supports it.
$1,130.00
Oil and swarovski crystals on canvas.
20x32"
Part of “The Seafood Series” triptych. Each canvas was fully self-stretched, sized, primed and prepared for hanging. A frozen octopus was purchased from New York’s Chinatown and wrapped around a friend in my shoe for reference shots.
$1,365.00
Metallic watercolor and gel pen on illustration board (framed).
16x20"
Abstract metallic bubbles form a composition derived from dream state, representative of a teardrop. The bubble shapes resemble fragments or cellular makeup of the tear, as if it has been shattered then reconstructed to form a whole.
Framed - image of framed piece forthcoming.
$1,365.00
Metallic watercolor and gel pen on illustration board (framed).
16x20"
Abstract metallic bubbles form a composition derived from dream state, representative of a hybrid black bear and grizzly bear claw.
Framed - image of framed piece forthcoming.
$1,365.00
Metallic watercolor and gel pen on illustration board (framed).
16x20"
Abstract metallic bubbles form a composition derived from dream state, representative of a Monstera leaf. The bubble shapes resemble fragments or cellular makeup of the leaf, as if it has been shattered then reconstructed to form a whole. The gel pen bubble outlines and about half of the filled in shapes were created during a live art session for Dream Market Chicago at the Hotel Intercontinental in Chicago, IL. The remaining shapes were completed in my home studio.
Framed - image of framed art forthcoming.
$420.00
Oil and graphite on canvas paper (framed).
8x10"
Created in a mid-century modern palette, a pop of metallic silver paint and added graphite swirling strokes give this small abstract piece depth. The graphite was used in an inspirational way after Giacometti's paintings.
Framed - image of art in frame forthcoming.
$1,420.00
Oil on canvas.
24x30"
Created using a contemporary palette derived from midcentury modernism, a curve of gold metallic bubble-shaped accents lends movement to the core composition's overlapping abstract shapes. A gradient background achieves a dynamic layered effect.
$2,970.00
Oil on canvas.
16x20"
Metallic and glossy abstract objects intersect to form a composition derived from the subconscious. The three upward strokes symbolize the fraying of our own identities (past, present and future) as the contexts of our lives shift.
$560.00
Oil, graphite, swarovski crystals on canvas.
11x14"
Harnessing the properties and psychological benefits of crystals is at the core of my spiritual practice. In this piece I wanted to abstract a clear quartz point into multicolored facets that refract into the colors of the spectrum when light shines through the crystal. The overall background draws cues from midcentury modernism. Swarovski crystals accentuate the quartz's terminal points, reinforcing the overall diamond shape's structure.
$4,940.00
Oil on canvas.
24x30"
This piece is modeled after the original 1925 oil on canvas painting by Joan Miro. He said it acts as "'a sort of genesis'—the amorphous beginnings of life". I relate to it in the layers with which it was created. A base subconscious blending of color, followed by the deliberate solidification of a creative idea into tangible form.
$4,325.00
Oil on canvas.
20x20"
This piece is modeled after the original oil on canvas painting by Wassily Kandinsky. A great cosmic order is formed by precisely placed circles in the original. These shapes become amorphous in my version, turning the notion of universal precision on its head. Nothing is exact in the chaos of life, not even a perfect circle.
$4,430.00
Oil and swarovski crystals on canvas.
24x36"
Gem II came to me in a hallucinogenic state; I felt compelled to depict the fracture of something precious, then reconstitute it with a glimmer. A direct response to hopes for the future being shattered, then put back together like Kintsugi pottery - stronger and more beautiful than before.