Most of the time, we hear of artists ‘making it’ after the time when they’re already quite famous. They come to us packaged and ready to go as if they’ve been dropped into our life with the utmost skill and talent, shooting out masterpieces that will forever live in our collective consciousness. When you think about this for a few seconds, it is very clear that it is simply not true. In reality, the artist that you’ve been reading about on your social media has had to go through a whole journey to get people to believe that what he’s doing is not only worth looking at but also worth buying.
Funnily enough, the freshness of new art forms is probably what attracts or repels people. Indeed, the novelty and innovation in an art piece can truly make or break an artist. Consider the obvious example of Van Gogh and how his paintings were not understood in his time because they were too different. Were it not for how things played out, we might never have known of this artist’s genius.
This is why it is essential to welcome new art with an open mind and let it take us to the places it wants to without any prejudice. It’s an exciting challenge that we can all participate in. With every new year, new exciting concepts emerge, and I’m sure the next one will bring an array of new creativity.
With this in mind, let’s have a look at some of 2024’s contemporary emerging artists and what they have to offer.
Oriele Steiner
Born in 1993 in the UK, Oriele Steiner is a 31-year-old artist whose works have been slowly sending vibrating colors all over the internet. After graduating with a B.A in Fine Arts in 2015, she continued to explore her vision, honing and refining her skills, until she started to find her own visual voice. Her early work with pastel colors now seems like just a prologue to the stronger, almost highlighted colors which she is famous for now, and it is interesting to note how the menacing use of contrasts of these early pieces shaped her current iconic work with oil on canvas.
Upon reading a bit about her works, it is very common to find the word ‘whimsical’ when people attempt to describe her paintings, and you can see why because something is unsettling yet playful in her works. This might be attributed to her native culture and the tragi-comedic sense of humor that is typically attributed to the English, where sometimes the darkest moments are turned inside out through the use of a joke, be it as simple as a pun.
Of course, this is translated differently in painting. For example, in ‘That Time of Day’ (2024), she distorts the body of the female form around a crescent moon that lies in the center of the painting. Through it, she almost seems to imply the changing moods and shifting tides of our lives, not only throughout long periods but even in a single day. This peculiar observation of time and its effect on us is truly unsettling because it suggests just how little we are in control sometimes.
Steiner’s painting speaks to our increasing awareness of human complexity. Literally and figuratively, there is no black or white; it is a spectrum. The intimate becomes grotesque, and the grotesque becomes intimate.
Nuno Gil
Born in Lisbon, Portugal, in 1983, Nuno Gil finished his B.A in Painting in Fine Arts in 2008, when he was already 25. Only four years later, he had his first exhibition. In 2014, he was featured in a book about emerging painters by Thames & Hudson, and by 2016, he had already had his first solo exhibition on an international scale.
Typically working with acrylic, Indian ink, and graphite on paper, Gil sometimes also uses embossed leather, giving his paintings a different array of textures in the already maximalist vision of his works. These seemingly primitive-looking pieces take Gil around 3-4 months to complete, proof of the meticulous composition behind these works.
Due to the vivid play with colors and strong yet delightful contrasts, Gil is typically compared to Henri Matisse due to the naive atmosphere of the paintings, as well as their sense of movement and ongoing transformation. This very accurate and fascinating comparison is evident in the vivacity of Gil’s art, where we can see his modern reinterpretation of classical motifs come to life in a myriad of colors carefully placed upon the canvas.
Kuo Yen Fu
Born in Taipei in 1979, Kuo Yen Fu had a fascinating life and was the ‘latest’ painting bloomer from all the other artists on this list. In the 1980s, he went from being a sprinter to a TV show actor, and eventually, he became a pop music artist. It was only in 2018 that he left his career as a performer to become a full-time painter.
His works capture this sense of vibrant energy, and knowing just a little bit about his background says a lot about the subjects of his paintings, which have been exciting depictions of athletes in motion, displaying energy and movement. However, these are not his only subjects, as he has done various odd takes on ‘still life’. However, he is perhaps mostly known for his ability to capture the rhythm of sports, using rough and bright colors to animate the moments of his subjects further.
One of his most famous paintings, ‘The Moment of Winning,’ is an example of catharsis captured and framed for the viewer to see. Yen Fu strives towards an artistic experience of fulfillment and relief, displaying human resilience and achievement, evoking, or hoping to evoke, a positive life experience.
Trends Among Emerging Artists
Despite their age differences, these three artists are contemporaries, and when you look between the lines, they share certain qualities, which can be interesting to explore. For instance, though it might not be the most obvious connection, technology must influence these individuals, even though it is almost a cliché to say that in our time. This is precisely why the argument stands. The sensory overload of growing up in these early decades of the 21st century is something very real. So it is no surprise that these artists go for strong, sometimes overwhelming colors in their works, almost as a challenge to the visuals with which they have to ‘compete’ online.
On a clearer note, it is worth noting that whilst the three artists don’t necessarily have the same perception of human beings and the human condition, they all tackle a certain kind of fragility from a different angle. Starting with Nuno Gil, we see a concern with this childlike imagination, a feeling of growth, renewal, rebirth, and naivety. On the other hand, when you look at Oriele Steiner, this is not exactly what you get. Steiner is more concerned with the anxieties of being alive, using contorted and distorted depictions of human figures, especially the female form, to express the multifaceted plain of existence. On the opposite side of Steiner stands Yen Fu, who, as we saw prior, tries to capture moments of overcoming struggles and celebrating victory.
If we had to evaluate the more contemporary crises of our time and the new chapters of our era, we get a whole other level to these three fantastic emerging artists. ‘Globalization’ is one of those words we’ve been hearing for a long time, and all the while, we are always seeing new levels of it, with all the pros and cons that it brings with it. Steiner’s concern with our identity and existentialism and Fu’s fascination with competition highlight an essential state of our time in supermodernity and the rules of the game as we know it. Gil, on the other hand, and his concern with renewal and rebirth seems to echo a subconscious—or conscious—struggle with our ecology and the environmental concerns, some of which are a consequence of the systems that have been put in place in the recent years of civilization.
Supporting Emerging Talent
When it comes to making art, emerging artists face issues that are often financially related. One of the most common ones is a lack of resources; not having enough funds can hinder artists whose vision requires specific materials or assistance to be delivered in the best way possible. Another typical scenario is that an artist must dedicate a lot of their time to other work on a regular job instead of working on the art they want to share with the world.
Luckily, you can support artists in many ways. Artists will often visit other artists’ exhibitions, gigs, readings, launches, and releases to show support. Naturally, anyone can do this, and after reading this article, I highly recommend visiting your local artist’s gallery shows. You will be surprised at what an enriching experience it can be!
Alternatively, there is also the possibility of purchasing the art, which is definitely one of the best ways of showing appreciation by making a financial contribution to the work. This gesture is a sign of encouragement to the artist, where you are essentially saying that you not only believe that it was worth their time and effort, but you hope to support what they do and look forward to seeing future works.
On another level of support, you can also commission artists, which opens up a very interesting conversation. This is because the artist will potentially have more of a limited framework to work by, which can be amazing when it comes to creativity. At the same time, you are getting something that is made with you in mind, and in the end, the artist is being paid for doing what he or she knows to do best.
You can also check out sites like Be Glam to learn more about your local art scene. This platform serves as a podium for artists who are in the early stages of their sunrise on the scene. It offers them the opportunity to exhibit their work and, as a result, expand their audience wherever they may be. Platforms like Be Glam also offer workshops, mentorships, and other opportunities to network even, which is essential in the art world.
Final Thoughts
In increasingly challenging times, the role of art is more important than ever. Art helps us escape from our moments of distress, cope with personal and collective life-changing events, reminds us of the beauty of life, and can even teach us how to be more compassionate and understanding with each other.
Artists such as Oriele Steiner, Nuno Gil, and Kuo Yen Fu are taking us into the psyche of our time, not only from their point of view but also from our point of view. This is why it is important to support emerging artists, and I highly encourage you to delve deeper into the painters mentioned above, together with other contemporary artists.