Ariana Vaeth is a Baltimore raised artist focused on contemporary narrative through the self-portrait. Her work lives within an entanglement of tender interactions within the home. Vaeth received her undergraduate degree from the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design. Her museum history includes solo exhibitions in Door County, Wisconsin at the Miller Art Museum and in Milwaukee at the Lynden and the Haggerty Museum of Art. Vaeth is a 2017 Mary Nohl Fellow in the Emerging Artist category.
She is a recipient of the Gener8tor. Art creative entrepreneurial grant. Vaeth received a 2020 Wisconsin Visual Art Achievement Award. She spent this past fall in Door County at the Al & Mickey Quinlan studio and housing residency. She enters 2022 with her sophomore appearance in the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art’s Wisconsin Triennial: Ain’t I a Woman? opening April 23rd through October. Her next solo exhibition will be August of 2022 at Hooper House Gallery in Baltimore, Maryland. Vaeth is currently the Artist-in-Residence at Ayzha Fine Arts Gallery, a program developed by gallerist Cynthia Henry.
Mediums: Oils paint, oil pastels
Favorite Artist Tool: Egbert brush
Go-to Local Inspiration: My best friend’s humble abode (Leo Palacios and LaNia Sproles’ house)
Mentee Compliment: Al is a curious man who comes with questions, options, and an open heart.Fun Fact: There is no better brunch than a McGriddle and a Steak, Egg & Cheese Bagel from Mickey D’s.
Serious Fact: Spring 2023 is my first year teaching a college course at Beloit College. My relationship with Al prepared me for this role, and I am grateful for what he has taught me.
Artist Statement
My paintings are a working autobiography. Scenes center life through the safety of homes and environments of invitation through a Black American lens. They document feelings of comfort and archive key frames that imprint my thoughts. Through the self-portrait, I lead the narratives. My mark-making pedagogy considers the desires and consent of my subjects; by depicting the people I am most fortunate to know, I must honor their vision of themselves as my loved one. Paintings force subject and artist to a realm where we communicate by our terms.