Exuberantly colorful and bursting with joyful energy, Ayleen Wolfe's Wildflowers collection is a celebration of women and their ability, like wildflowers, to thrive in challenging environments. We had the lovely opportunity to speak with her about her creative journey and what inspires her in this week's artist spotlight. We hope you enjoy our interview with Ayleen, and don't forget to shop Wildflowers, available now in the gallery!
What is your earliest memory of being creative?
As cliche as it might sound, I have been drawing since I could hold a pencil. My father, although a banker, was very creative. I remember him drawing anything you asked him to from pure imagination.
Not surprisingly, I spent most of my classes throughout school, drawing on the margins of my notes and books. I would draw my classmates’ portraits, everyday school life items, etc. I did this through college and law school and even during conference calls as a lawyer.
After the birth of my second child in 2010, I was in the depths of baby blues during a cold Chicago winter when I took to sneaking down to the basement during naptime to paint flamingos and flowers. I initially thought I was simply searching for color and life in the dead of a Chicago winter, but later realized I was actually searching for a way back to myself. I had been looking for evidence that the version of me before I became someone’s lawyer, wife, and mother, was still there.
How do you want people to feel when they look at your art?
When I paint, I truly try to embody that childlike curiosity and wonder that isn’t hindered by the proverbial “shoulds.” Painting to me feels like my happy rebellion against all the shoulds society tends to place on us. My only hope is that the unfettered joy I feel when I paint shines through my paintings and inspires others to spend time doing that thing, whatever it is, that brings them incredible happiness and peace.
What inspires you?
Women and wildflowers are common themes in my artwork. I see many parallels between the two. I believe many societies often think of flowers and women as beautiful, yet frail. However, I think that's only true of domesticated flowers and women. Wild flowers are incredibly powerful and resilient, growing and even thriving in the toughest of environments. I think women who follow their intuition and interests, whether they align with society's expectations or not, are incredibly powerful and resilient as well.
The fact that my art is abstract and completely intuitive is in line with these themes. I could create representational art, create a mirror image of what I see, but there's no wildness or emotion or intuition available to me when I paint that way. Abstract expression, abstract botanicals, abstract figurative and the freedom to use a variety of materials through mixed media provides me the space and freedom to create from my truest self.
What is most rewarding about painting?
The most rewarding thing about painting is that I GET to create something that has never existed before. That feels like magic to me. Coming from the legal world, you don’t get to create anything. Sure you solve people’s problems, or hope to, but there is no tangible creation at the end of it that outlasts you.
Do you have a favorite quote about creativity?
My favorite quote of all time is by Albert Einstein: “Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”
This quote was instrumental in my leaving law and dedicating myself to more creative pursuits. I never felt that law was quite the right fit. For me, if the passion isn’t there, it’s hard to feel successful at something.
I always knew I was meant to be “a creative,” and that shined through in so many aspects of my life. I was constantly taking up creative classes and hobbies, like photography, sewing, art, writing, interior design, rehabbing and redesigning our homes, etc. When I finally found painting and the freedom it gave me, I knew I had found the perfect career fit for me.
Who is your favorite contemporary artist, and why?
I think the one contemporary artist whose work inspires me the most is Katherine Bradford. I love listening to her interviews. She has incredible wisdom and humility. She began painting later in life, after getting married and having children. In an interview, she once said she started painting because she wanted more freedom in her life, especially as a woman. She talked about the expectations that were placed on her as a woman.
In retrospect, the societal “shoulds” are a big part of why I started painting. I think a lot of what sparked my desire to paint was feeling like who I was had gotten lost and taken a back seat to the neverending list of to-dos, some admittedly self imposed. I credit motherhood as the impetus for actually figuring myself out and what I truly wanted to do with my life. Nevertheless, motherhood and running a household felt like overwhelming work to me when I was a baby lawyer and mom at 25.
