Minna Gilligan

Minna Gilligan:
Artist

Minna Gilligan is entrancing. An eclectic wardrobe of retro dresses resembling pieces of art, perfectly painted rouge lips, and a shambolic studio adorned with glitter curtains, the Melbourne artist is not afraid to stand boldly beside her playful, nostalgia-dipped work — and the art world is taking note.

It has been a busy year, with the National Gallery of Australia acquiring three of her vibrant art pieces and winning the commission to design the creative space for the Melbourne Art Fair.

In the artist statement for her most recent solo exhibition Long Time No See at Daine Singer, Minna pondered, ‘I seem to be growing more concerned with my perception of time. While it can be dull, thumping and slow moving, equally I lament as it rapidly slips away…’

It is easy to see how the hours would fly by for the ambitious 24-year-old.  Minna has exhibited her work in prominent shows and fairs such as Melbourne Now and Spring 1883; maintains an illustration column for New York-based online magazine ROOKIE; regularly shares her everyday delights and discoveries on her personal blog; and is currently in the process of writing her first book for Hardie Grant – all while upholding a part-time job with Art Guide Australia.

When asked how she manages to squeeze it all in, Minna let out an infectious laugh that for a moment fooled me into thinking we were both at a school fete with fairy floss in our hand, ‘I don’t know if I do sometimes!’

Minna is poised and attentive, but even with her legs elegantly crossed, couldn’t help but bop enthusiastically in her seat as she described rifling through racks at Savers and disappearing into a psychedelic utopian paradise when cutting out material for her collage work.

From her lipstick shade (a lip-stain by Revlon as a base topped with Russian Red by M·A·C), to her imaginative works, Minna brightens the world around her, teaching us that a childlike sense of wonder can keep us curious and close to the things that matter most. 

Saturday:

I usually work at home on a Saturday. It has been such nice weather recently and I’ve loved having all the windows open. I’m on the computer, but I feel at least a little connected to nature.

My family and I will usually go out one night a week on a Saturday night if I am home. It’s good, my whole family works in a creative field so it’s the time I can get advice from them and ask them questions. Otheriwse I might get drinks with friends in which case I start getting ready in the afternoon! [Laughs]

Sunday:

I usually spend Sundays finding things. There is a Savers just near my house in Greensborough and it’s the best, I’ve been going there since I was fifteen and I am completely obsessed. I find this to be my relaxation as well, riffling through the racks and totally focusing on just finding trinkets, books, fabric and materials. I either go by myself or with my Mum and sister, and return home and cut out imagery I’ve found.

If I have the time I might write a blog post. It just depends because sometimes I just don’t feel like it, so I just won't do it.

I always think I would love to have my blog forever and ever until I get really old … I really like the idea of being able to follow someone’s trajectory though their writing from a really young age.

Sunday nights my family all go to my Nanna’s house and have dinner there. She is getting a bit old now so we usually get take-away, or I might cook a quiche. [Laughs]  Everyone reading this is probably like, “Here it is again, that bloody quiche!”

BEHIND THE SCENES

On how to become an artist …

You have to work exceptionally hard. There is no use sort of lolling around in your bed wishing you were an artist. I probably did that a lot when I was younger! [Laughs]

You really have to want it or you will find the work really hard— working on weekends and after work. I also think it’s important be productive and don’t think about how your work is being received, or making work that looks like other work.

It was hard because I felt like my work was different and I struggled a bit with learning to accept that. But eventually the more confidence you get in yourself I think the easier it is.

On putting yourself as an artist into your work …

I really put my individual self on an equal plane as my work. It’s in the way I write, the way I dress, and I think it makes it easier to grasp ... for people to be able to see the person behind the work.

I think that it is something people see as devaluing my work, but I don’t see it as that. I just think it makes it stronger or more interesting because I’m not afraid to stand beside it.

The argument that the artist should be a shadow to the work isn’t necessary wrong, but for me I have a lot to say and express and I feel as though it’s important for me to be there as well.

On the attraction to bygone eras …

When I did honours I wanted to investigate why I have this attraction to the 60s and 70s …  I never came to one conclusion, but there was a number of things that contributed to the idea. Mostly it is the music that has this sense of nostalgia because my Mum would play that when I was growing up. There is also the general attraction to the aesthetic, it is so dynamic, bold and fearless and I’ve always loved it. I think it's inexplicable in a way, the colour and everything, there is so much joy in it. 

On art as a means to escape …

There is an element of escapism in being able to collect all these things and get lost in fantasies.

I collect a lot of found photographs and in those I find these misty memories that seem warm and comforting and they seem nostalgic for me, even though I never lived it. You kind of begin to make up stories and in that create these hybrid fantasies.

On what others connect to in her artwork ...

I think the colour and the childlike naivity inherent in my work is what makes it accessible and open to a range of viewers. I feel like anyone can view it online, and they might not be familiar with the art industry, but still get something from it. As can a curator coming to the physical exhibition. 

I am very conscious in that I really want anyone to be able get something out of my work. That’s made possible due to the general sense of nostalgia—it feels familiar to people because I am taking all these elements and repurposing them and putting them together in a different way. It is still familiar even though it is new.

On blurring the boundaries between commercial and fine art …

I also work in a commercial sphere as well as fine art sphere and sometimes they cross over. I don’t like the stigma around commercial art … I find that really counterproductive. I want to make work so people can see it.

On the secret delight of being bad at emails ...

Sometimes I’ll be looking at emails and feeling stressed and think, “Why am I doing this? They can wait till Monday!” Why does everything need to be so immediate? Admittedly, I can be bad at emails. It’s funny, I read them, but then I put off replying and then think “Agh, I should do that!” and it becomes more of a big thing the more you put it off. I need to get on top of that a bit more ... I’m still learning.

On pursing big, crazy goals…

Think really big, think globally! I think it’s good to have crazy goals that may never come into fruition, but at least you are trying.

In highschool I was told by my teachers “Don’t apply for the VCA, they never take young people.”

I couldn’t understand why you would not encourage somebody to do something they wanted to do.

Luckily, I had such a great family who thought it was ridiculous and that I should not only apply, but put it first on my list.

If you don’t get it, you can try again. Nothing is the be all and end all. There is always a way to do it, even if it’s not the traditional path.

On slowing down and shutting off …

Ultimately, getting lost in these make-believe stories is a means of trying to slow things down. With the internet, our lives have become so fast and so overwhelming at times, my practice is kind of my response to that maybe.

I’ve only just recently realised how important that is. Sometimes I just turn my phone on aeroplane mode and just not communicate for a little while. I find being at home also allows me to switch off sometimes and be physically separate as well as internet separate.

I think the internet is fantastic and it really helped me to discover what I was interested in and other artists. ROOKIE mag for instance was a massive thing for me and still is, but I think it is also overwhelming and anxiety inducing at times. I do feel I’ve got to check myself and make sure I’m not getting too lost in it all because it is dangerous to make it your main world.

On living in the family home …

Ultimately I’m saving to buy my own place which is pretty wild, but my friend just bought an apartment in the city and she is only a year older than me so I figure if she can do it I can do it. My Dad is always like “it’s the ultimate freedom,” so yeah, that is essentially why I’m still at home I suppose.  I’m really into looking at real estate, I always think about that! But in the meantime I am thinking of decorating my new studio at Gertrude Contemporary and that can be my mini apartment. I want to get lots of plants, and more glitter curtains!