Enter Gallery is delighted to announce the arrival of exclusive prints from Charlotte Rose
The 22-year-old self-taught artist from North London only started painting during the pandemic but has already held a sell-out solo show and been commissioned to create pieces for the likes of Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Yungblud.
In today’s article, we’re revealing a little more about this force of artistic nature, where she got her beginnings, and the inspirations behind her art…
Artistic foundations
It seems creativity was running through Charlotte Rose’s veins long before she picked up the paintbrush. Both her grandparents were artists, as was her mother, who specialises in intricate floral pieces, and whose paintings adorn her daughter’s walls to this day.
While Rose initially planned to express her creative side as a writer, it is via both fashion (as a successful model) and painting that Rose has chosen to express her creative side to the world.
However, this passion for the written word is never far from her mind, with Rose drawing inspiration from her favourite novels and screenplays. Eagle-eyed literature lovers will spot quotes from her heroes, including the likes of Kurt Vonnegut and Charles Bukowski, daubed across her paintings.
Creativity amidst the chaos
Up until the pandemic struck in March 2020 and the world was instructed to stay at home, Rose was busy working as a model. When lockdown kicked in and photoshoots were delayed, Rose turned to art as a way to fill her time and vent her frustration.
On painting during lockdown, Rose reveals:
‘It was almost like a diary entry; it was a distraction. I covered myself in paint, I was almost like a child again, just completely messy; it was a massive stress reliever I think.’
Initial steps towards exploring her artistic style led to prolific creation of bold and daring designs, and the development of quite the creative process. In an interview with jewellery brand, Missoma (with whom Rose has collaborated), the artist revealed a little about her creative process:
‘It starts with a massive canvas. I buy it by the metre and don’t really cut very straight as I don’t have much patience for it, then I nail it into the wall – much to my boyfriend’s dismay. Usually I’m in my pants, because everything I own is covered in paint.
Then I start mixing the paints to my favourite music (something high energy) and I think the colours are the most important part – that’s where it can be a really amazing painting or it can go terribly, terribly wrong! I’m massively inspired by colour – it’s the way I articulate emotion.’
‘Prescribing truth to old illusions’
With such an artistic upbringing, and unavoidable circumstances providing the perfect storm for creation – a show was sure to follow, and sure enough earlier this year Rose held her debut solo exhibition in London.
Entitled, ‘I Quit Last Week’, the show was a roaring success and sell-out. Each of the 15 large-scale acrylic on plywood paintings was created as an exploration of late 20th century cigarette branding, and to shine a light on ‘the dream sold by ad companies to sell poisonous goods.’
Via her inclusion of popular cartoon characters, Rose confronts how unscrupulous cigarette companies would stop at nothing to flog their poisonous products – even being happy to dip a grubby toe into the world of children’s cartoons all in the name of a sale.
In creating her striking works, Rose employs a range of techniques, from spray-painting bold neons against clashing primary colours to covering herself in paint and using her body as a paintbrush. Speaking of this messy technique, Rose reveals:
‘I love the fact lots of cave paintings were made by finger painting. It feels so natural and so untainted by technology – I can step away from my phone and use my body to paint on a canvas and feel so far away from all that.’
Shop Charlotte Rose here
