Meet Amy Schissel | Visual Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Amy Schissel and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Amy, how do you think about risk?
Some of my most successful Art Exhibitions are the result of having taken major risks. Usually, for me, risk-taking also involves time-sensitive deadlines, so once I decide to take the plunge, there is no turning back. For example, when offered a high-profile Exhibition to create a large project at a scale that I have never attempted before, I go for it, even if I only have the vision of the end result but do not quite know how to get there. I thrive on the excitement of being faced with new installation challenges and learning new equipment and software that help my projects get underway. How I grow artistically and professionally is by trusting my creative process but also by not playing it ‘safe’. If the past is any indication of the future, when I go for it, good stuff happens.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am a Visual Artist engaged in Painting and Drawing ‘Installation’ work. That means that I like to create a total environment or experience for the viewer within the space of a gallery. This includes anything from creating large scroll drawings that fill the gallery space, bending intuitively to its architecture, or paintings that I hang over direct wall drawings, handpainted wallpapers, and digital prints. I am interested in “Augmented” reality and how physical space is now also informational space, interpenetrated with data and information. I borrow from traditional maps, and internet mapping schemata, to draw out and merge complexes of space that both represent physical and informational spaces, to make a new ‘World Atlas’ reflecting our contemporary landscapes. I have always been inclined to be an ‘artist’, as I was part of that world since childhood. My mother is a professional landscape painter, and I had the great luck of growing up in her studio, going on photoshoots, and trekking through the Canadian wilderness in pursuit of the perfect ‘shot’. I attended her exhibitions and tagged along to workshops as a child, where I learned the foundational skills of drawing. In other words, I have been drawing and painting since I can remember, and this carried through to my undergraduate studies and graduate studies. Since graduating from my MFA program where I studied in Canada, I focussed on having a professional career as a painter. It was not easy as a young artist to find studio space to work in at a reasonable cost, no matter what city I was living in. I often shared spaces with other artists, and commonly, we would commiserate on how many exhibition proposals we had sent out and how many rejection letters we would receive. I found out early that artist life was a hustle! I am very grateful now to be building my international profile, and to have my work placed in public and corporate collections across the globe.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
My favorite spots in the city are where the galleries and art museums are! For the arts, the Wynwood District is a popular destination, and it’s worth the walk to see all the street art and murals near Wynwood walls. When there, the R HOUSE is a fun place to eat, being full of abstract paintings. Little Haiti, Little Havana, and the Design District are also great places to go to view art. I usually use a gallery guide to get around. In little Havana, I like the street-style tacos at Taquiera Viva Mexico (the price is right!), and the walk down Calle Ocho is a must…you can get a cafecito almost anywhere. A nice day would be a visit to Bayside park with its outdoor shopping and restaurants along the waterfront, for lunch, and take a walk from there to the Perez Art Museum. It is also a must to visit the Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, and, it is not far off. Somewhere in there, dinner at Valentia Mediterranean is a must at least for the dessert! Tiramisu is very good there. A visit to Southbeach would take an entire day, checking out the art deco, walking through Espanola Way (filled with Spanish colonial architecture) and having a massive cocktail at Sugar Factory is a must, before checking out the beach. For more beach, I would take guests to South Point Park and watch the boats with Joe’s Take Away. They have super fresh crabs…great for a picnic. A night at the beach would have to include a stop at ‘Kill Your Idol’ a great bar to visit located on Española Way, and hidden compared to the more tourist laden spots in Southbeach.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I am going to dedicate my shoutout to Patrick Mikhail, director of Patrick Mikhail Gallery, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Patrick Mikhail Gallery has been representing my work since 2011, and because of Patrick and the PMG team, I have had the opportunity to build art shows that travel internationally, have had my works placed in amazing collections, and have been presented with a multitude of opportunities for personal and career development. Over the years of working with Patrick Mikhail, he has become a trusted mentor and friend, who is always supportive and encouraging of my vision. I look forward to the next big project with him!

Website: amyschissel.com

Instagram: Amy Schissel