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ABOUT ADRIENNE SHISHKO

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BIOGRAPHY

adrienne shishko is a process-driven, mixed media artist based in boston, ma. she is known for her innovative ways of engaging communities in art beyond traditional gallery spaces through pop ups, digital murals, and building wraps. in 2017, she was commissioned by jbg smith to enliven a business district in crystal city, md which helped encourage new development in the area. inspired by her background as a buyer at saks fifth avenue and as general counsel at an environmentally responsible investing firm, her recent work has centered on using reclaimed materials to explore the environmental impact of fast fashion and issues of over-consumption. since 2009, her work has been exhibited throughout new england at venues including beacon gallery, the quin house, the providence art club, mosesian center for the arts, cambridge art association among others, and is included in numerous private and corporate collections around the country.

BIOGRAPHY

ARTIST STATEMENT

my work explores the environmental impact of materialism and the complicated relationships people have with their possessions. i use a variety of media responding to the stimulus around me. my practice is rooted in intuition, through which i try to balance a playful sense of improvisation with creative systems of order. i often rely on grids and hard lines to build a framework that anchors me as i endeavor to bring meaning to matter and order to the chaos.

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ARTIST STATEMENT

PRESS

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ARTS TO HEARTS PROJECT

"adrienne shishko is a process-driven, mixed media artist based in boston, ma. she is known for her innovative ways of engaging communities in art beyond traditional gallery spaces through pop ups, digital murals, and building wraps. in 2017, she was commissioned by jbg smith to enliven a business district in crystal city, md which helped encourage new development in the area..."

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BOSTON GLOBE

"adrienne shishko focuses on consumerism’s easy-come, easy-go attitude, recycling clothes and plastics in her mixed-media works. printmaker suzanne mosely relishes the resonance of keepsakes. together, they have mounted “an object’s promise: the magical thinking we attach to our things” at fort point art community’s assemblage art space...

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ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST

step inside a ken fulk–designed gilded age members-only social club in boston’s back bay

"ken fulk’s highly sophisticated interiors—often swathed in colorful hand-painted wallpaper and decorated with a mix of centuries-old antiques and custom contemporary pieces—are almost instantly recognizable to anyone with an appreciation for design. ..." 

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BOSTON VOYAGER

check out adrienne shishko's artwork

"today we’d like to introduce you to adrienne shishko. adrienne, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist. my art career did not evolve in a conventional way. i have always followed my gut and as a result have had quite a diverse journey..." 

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WASHINGTON POST

four buildings in crystal city are covered in bright fabric. why?

"the designs are based on existing — smaller — works that were tweaked through the miracle of software. shishko’s 'blue dot' grew from a 24-by-30-inch canvas that incorporated the remnants of sheets of circular stickers. 'it obscures a lot of the building, but the circular forms look like windows and give you a sort of hint of what’s coming next,' she said..."

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BOSTON GLOBE

boston's 29 best new shops and services

"behind the green-and-teal storefront of sowa’s beacon gallery, owner christine o'donnell shows the work of half a dozen artists who take particular joy in their craft. highlights include myra abelson’s nuanced still lifes, adrienne shishko’s crisp pen-and-ink pieces, and aja Johnson’s exuberant abstracts..."

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STYLE CARROT

artmonday: massart auction preview

"this year marks the massart auction’s 28th anniversary, with proceeds going directly to scholarships and support for academic programs. the massart auction is this saturday, april 8, 2017 at 6:30 at massart. all the artwork in the silent auction is online now at paddle 8. here are some of my favorites. ready, set, bid..."

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STYLE CARROT

artmonday: sneak peek into the smfa art sale 2014

"The smfa art sale 2014 starts this thursday. It’s also known as the museum school art sale—the art sale that takes place every year at the school of the museum of fine arts, boston (smfa), the renown art school adjacent to the museum of fine arts, boston that has been influential part of the boston art scene since it’s founding in 1876..."

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PIANO CRAFT GALLERY

flux—six artists respond to uncertainty

"adrienne shishko began making knitted sculptural works using recycled clothing and linens collected from her community in the aftermath of the 2016 presidential election. the project explores 'the torn fabric of society' and contemplates transformation, adaptation, and shelter. the works are infused with the complex histories and identities of the individuals who used them and explore what it means to feel safe and secure..."

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CLOTH PAPER SCISSORS

painting and collaging: a nonlinear process

"one of the most challenging obstacles every artist faces is the ominous, looming presence of a blank canvas. one approach i take to overcome this hurdle is to begin a piece by affixing pieces of tissue paper, colored papers, ribbons, or fabric pieces to the board or canvas with gel medium. if you are using heavier fabrics, you may prefer to use a more rigid substrate like a wood panel instead of a canvas..."

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CLOTH PAPER SCISSORS

collage techniques: try taking a nonlinear path

"i thought adrienne's process would be a good exercise for anyone who tends to think in a linear fashion and who also hesitates to create abstract collage art or paintings. adrienne uses the typical collage supplies: tissue papers, found papers, fabric scraps and fibers, liquid medium and heavy gel medium, acrylic paints, and a variety of paintbrushes..."

"tied into knots" (located on the right side of the image) installed in The Quin House's reading room, as featured in Architectural Digest.

PRESS

VIDEOS

FIRST PLACE

2017

newton art association awards show

AWARDS

SECOND PLACE

2017

james king bonnar award show

FIRST PLACE

2017

newton art association new members show

EXHIBITIONS