Alexandra Dillon is a Los Angeles-based surrealist artist who has garnered attention for her unique approach to upcycling old household objects into stunning art pieces. Her work involves transforming discarded items such as worn-out paintbrushes, vintage padlocks, rusty axes, and old shovels into canvases for her portraits of imagined people. Dillon’s creative process is intuitive, allowing the “soul” of each object to guide the creation of its new face, resulting in a range of characters from regal women to mysterious figures.
Inspired by historical styles like Roman-Egyptian mummy portraits and Old Master paintings, her artwork is a blend of the whimsical and the classical, breathing new life into objects that would otherwise be forgotten. Dillon’s art not only challenges the perception of what can be used as a canvas but also speaks to the potential of everyday objects to tell new stories.
My characters come to me the way [they do to] novelists. They show up and tell me who they are. I never quite know who will show up. I work on each piece over the course of several days. They often change and grow into themselves more fully. When I have found the emotion and personality of a character, I know I’m finished. It’s like meeting a new friend every day. I get to paint faces and conjure characters in a way that is more fun than just working on a canvas.
Alexandra Dillon
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