Montclair Magazine Holiday 2020 | Page 24

fine art
Because the goal was to incorporate images reflecting local settings , Benjamin researched Edgemont and Anderson Parks with the help of Lisanne Renner , historian for Friends of Anderson Park . She then created , using her trademark fusion of Eastern and Western techniques , seven paintings that include such recognizable features as the winding pathways and giant oak tree in Anderson Park , and water birds in Edgemont Park . When guests at the hotel exit the elevator on any floor , they see one of these paintings .
Heather Carter , Benjamin ’ s current art agent , praises her client ’ s ability to produce artworks that are different , yet carry her signature style . “ Her work reflects a mix of cultures and traditions and time periods ,” she says . “ She uses alot of humor and irony . And what Ilove is she injects mythology and sociopolitical commentary … and also just her versatility .”
“ The hotel is seen as an art hotel ,” says Brian Stolar , the president and CEO of Pinnacle Properties . “ Therefore , we wanted something that was really catchy , related directly to Montclair , and had some abstract color to it .”
ARTTHATREFLECTSADIVERSITY
OF EXPERIENCES
Benjamin ’ s commissions are just a small portion of the work she does , however . Having completed hundreds of pieces , mainly circling around the ideas of diversity , identity and the feeling of belonging , she has expressed many of her life experiences on her canvases . A good example of this is her series called “ Finding Home ,” which reflects her experiences living and traveling all over the world .
Benjamin always knew she wanted to be an artist . She went to undergraduate school in India , learning about and gaining experience in the craft of Eastern art . She then traveled across the world to Illinois , where she earned two MFA ’ s , one
ARTISTIC PREVIEW ( left ) Artists Siona Benjamin and Yvonne Verwer stand beneath their rotunda mural , which was recently installed at the MC Hotel . ( Right ) Benjamin is dwarfed by the mural she created for the hotel ’ s exterior .
in painting from Southern Illinois University -Carbondale and another in theater set design from University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign . She credits her background in theater and set design for finding the common ground between sustaining her signature style and making her work fit the atmosphere of the space ; at the MC Hotel , the hotel is the theater , and her artwork is the set .
One of her signature styles is the blue pigmentation of her characters . In a short documentary about her work that can be seen on Amazon Prime , Blue Like Me : The Art of Siona Benjamin , this emphasis on identity is discussed . The film ends with the simple statement ,“ We all come from everywhere , but the planet is blue .”
“ We are so many different skin colors and from different places , but we are connected as human beings , and the planet is blue ,” Benjamin says . “ And that ’ s why my characters in my work are blue , because we are the color of the sky .”
ART AS A FORCE FOR GOOD
She also finds her artwork to be an opportunity for advocacy . Her series titled “ Exodus ” portrays the struggles and experiences of refugees around the world . While she has never felt what it means to lose one ’ s home , Benjamin uses her opportunity as an artist to speak out . She thinks of this as akin to the work of visual journalists , recording the stories of the time . She has also been commissioned to illustrate a children ’ s book by Seattle publisher Intergalactic Afikomen about a character who “ belongs everywhere and nowhere ”— a feeling , as she has noted , with which she is familiar .
She launched another project in response to the global pandemic . With “ Cause for Comfort ,” Benjamin offers hand-signed archival prints and blankets priced below $ 100 , and donates 15 % of all proceeds to local nonprofits such as the Montclair Art Museum and Repair the World in New York .
Given the unorthodox and bold themes of her work , she receives a wide array of responses to her art . “ I think those who are open-minded to understand this amalgam of the world , this mixture of the world , really love my work ,” Benjamin says . She credits her local community with having a like-minded attitude toward other cultures and traditions .
And for her , that ’ s what Montclair is all about . “ It ’ s about introducing that different-ness and diversity ,” she says . “ So , the fact that Icould do an Indian miniature-inspired painting in the lobby of ahotel — itfits in , but it doesn ’ t . ( And ) that is what makes it unique .” ■
ROTUNDA : MAHMOUD SAMI ; WALL MURAL : SIONA BENJAMIN
22 HOLIDAY 2020 MONTCLAIR MAGAZINE