SexyCityscapes-Poster
The Wild East / Arts & Entertainment

In this two-part interview, The Wild East interviews Megan Angele and Trista di Genova, in the lead up to their two-woman show SEXY CITYSCAPES, opening at DV8 bar in Taipei Nov. 9, 2014.

Megan is a classically trained painter from Oregon who studied art and design at the Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland. She’s been living in Taiwan for three years working for her own advertising agency. She’s shown at the Hanson Howard Gallery in Ashland, Oregon and the Hult Center in Eugene, with her first show at 8-years old.

The Wild East: Who have been your greatest influences as an artist?
Megan: As a child I spent endless hours studying the illustrations of Susan Jeffers. Her intricate nature drawings were wondrous to me. I later became enamored of classical realism, and wanted to be able to paint like Rembrandt so that I could bring nature to life. I’ve always loved the Impressionists—my favorite being Toulouse-Lautrec because of his wild colors and ability capture a scene in motion.
In recent years I have been heavily influenced by the work of Hayao Miyazaki, Taiyō Matsumoto, Range Murata and other anime artists. I fell in love with anime over the last decade as I fell in love with Taiwan and Asian culture.

How did you get started painting?
Megan: I grew up in the woods, amongst old growth trees hanging thick with moss. I was drawing wildflowers, salamanders and fairies from the time I could hold a pen. To me it was a scholarly pursuit and a way of studying nature.

You’re from Oregon. Do you think this influences you and your style or inspiration?
Megan: My greatest influence I think came from Oregon’s terrain—mossy rocks, mushrooms and the magic of the forest. Being around powerful, academic women at the University of Oregon where my mom was working on her doctorate, probably made me more conscious of women artists and the treatment of the female figure in art.

W.E. Who are the artists you most admire and why?
Megan: I think Mary Cassat is the most talented artist that came out of the impressionist movement. Her paintings are incredibly lifelike and intimate, with a masterful use of color and form. Frida Kahlo painted fearlessly from the heart, and made her voice heard even in the shadow of Diego Rivera. Camille Rose Garcia is a prolific, contemporary female artist making a living on her work and that inspires me. Her colorful, haunting images address political subjects in a surrealistic style that is all her own.

WE: What are your future plans as an artist?
Megan: I’m currently giving classes in the French Impressionist style of ‘plein air’ painting (facebook.com/openairpainting). I also plan to study classical techniques at the Florence Academy of Art.