MEET THE ARTIST
Sonia Alins
The Illustrafemmes gallery hosted an exhibition titled "WE ARE THE SEA" by Sonia Alins, a Spanish illustrator based in Catalonia, from November 25, 2023 to January 24, 2024.
Sonia Alins is an artist who blends surrealism and romanticism to create her unique artistic personality. Her artwork reflects her personal reflections, often centered around emotions and dreams. Sonia's art frequently references femininity, feminism, motherhood, family, and the passage of time.
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The majority of Sonia's artwork features female characters. These figures are inspired by the feminine iconography of different historical art movements, such as the Romantic era's odalisques of Ingres, John Everett Millais's Ophelia, the Art Deco movement's Tamara de Lempicka, and Gustav Klimt's symbolism. Sonia Alins takes inspiration from Yves Klein's art and Joseph Cornell's poetic three-dimensional works, and she experiments with incorporating textures such as fabric, feathers, wool, printed paper, or plastic to create ethereal atmospheres and delicate three-dimensional representations.
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Sonia's artwork has been published in various countries including the United States, Japan, Scotland, Italy, and Germany. Her work has also received recognition and awards in several international competitions. To name a few, she has been awarded two gold medals from the Salon des Beaux Arts 2017 (SNBA, France), an award of excellence from Communication Arts Illustration Annual 2019 and 2021 (United States), a gold award from the Global Illustration Award 2018 (Frankfurt Book Fair, Germany), and a gold medal from the Society of Illustrators of New York (2021).
4 questions to know Sonia better
Illustrafemmes : As an artist, how do you describe yourself?
Sonia Alins : I would describe myself as a versatile and dynamic artist, curious and eager for experimentation. Drawing has always been the base of my artistic work, which I later adapt sometimes to different mediums far from paper. Besides, I would define myself as an artist with a defined surrealist personality.
RENCONTRER
L'ARTISTE
Illustrafemmes : One of the main elements in your artworks is a woman. Why do you often depict women in various feminine roles in your artworks?
Sonia Alins : My art completely feeds on my experience, my personal life, what I am, and what I feel. For this reason, most of the characters in my artworks represent myself or my feelings. In addition, I draw these female characters as voluminous, solid, deliberately disproportioned figures, going beyond a realistic representation to focus on their inner energy to convey stronger emotions.
Illustrafemmes : Which artists or styles of art inspired you when you created your artwork?
Sonia Alins : My main artistic influences are halfway between Surrealism and Romanticism. In the same way, my interest in painting women connects with the feminine iconography of the Romantic era, like Ingres’ odalisques or John Everett Millais’ Ophelia, the Art Déco movement (Tamara de Lempicka) or Gustav Klimt.Also, I would like to mention Frida Kalho, for her surrealism and the need to communicate her life, her desires and her love; Japanese artist Yakoi Kusama; Remedios Varo; or Francesca Woodman, an amazing referent in photography.
Besides, there are artists that have been always a constant source of inspiration for me such as Goya, Picasso, and El Bosco.
Illustrafemmes : Out of all of the illustrations you have created, what is your most favourite, and why?
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Sonia Alins : After ten intense years of developing my artistic career, many favorite artworks come to my mind, and choosing just one is extremely difficult. Nevertheless, I will select "The Swimmers", one of the most iconic works from my Water Women series. "The Swimmers" is an artwork where eleven swimmers create a dynamic choreography that conveys a happy and symbolic ode to feminism. The artwork was awarded several acknowledgements from international illustration competitions, which meant a significant accolade towards my work.
Thank you, Sonia!
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