Alec Celis

Lives and works in New York, NY

Artist statement

I'm Alec Celis (they/them), a 24 year-old emerging artist from North Carolina. I grew up moving around the Carolinas introspectively exploring the scenery found in rural communities and vacation hubs along the coast. My conflicted experience with being a queer child in the south created a unique environment for artistic cultivation. There are beautiful places in the Carolinas that coexist with hostile ideals and finding oneself in these areas formed an odd relationship with how I felt about my home and who I was becoming. That particular struggle has largely informed my art. I began making artwork in my diary as doodles to help express what I was feeling at the time. Since then, my work has become what I'd call visual journal entries designed to give an impression of the infinitely many passions and sentiments I experience. And in relation to that, the infinite experiences we all have internally. That is why I work within the horror vacui style because it is cathartic to indulge in creating every thought as a little detail in a larger work. I hope to make artwork that people can find endless ideas in. Artwork to commune with.

Artwork