Natalie Foss‘ illustration is situated at a fascinating convergence of psychedelia and surrealism. They’re portraits, mostly, but their subjects are never entirely realistic, either in color, framing, or composition. Her animal subjects are particularly noteworthy in this way: squirrels that appear fleshed in wood, dogs half-materialized and bizarrely textured; a man-like being who appears to be larger than planets.
There’s an emotional tone that comes with this too, one both inviting and sort of glazed-over. Even the most sharply-rendered figures seem like characters in a dream, neither fully aware nor asleep. There’s a tremendous sense of personality in this, though, one that’s elusive and begs to be soaked up slowly.
This balance of apparent subjective tone also keeps the more abstract or fragmentary pieces from feeling violent or destructive. Rather, they feel strongly, intentionally hyper-real, flitting in and out of normal vision in a pleasantly magical way. All this, expertly compounded and gelled together with a hint of cubism and a subtle yet confident sense of humor.
Check out Natalie’s website and Twitter too.
