About The Artist

Ali Aschman was born in 1985 in Mountain View, California, and grew up in Cape Town, South Africa. She received a BFA from the University of Cape Town in 2006 and an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2013. She currently lives and works in Chicago.

 

Artist's Statement

My artwork is a visual expression of my attempt to understand the world, and why it is both a terrible and wonderful place. The nature of good and evil, the juxtaposition of innocence and violence, hybridity, duality, transformation and alienation are recurring themes. I create mysterious, melancholy narratives inspired by fairytales and folklore that raise questions about human interactions.

I am interested in the brutality we inflict on one another, physically and emotionally, and the impulses we suppress. My interdisciplinary practice includes sculpture, drawing, printmaking, cut paper and animation, often combined in immersive installations. I build curious, theatrical spaces that elicit an emotional response, in which viewers can find personal significance within their individual contexts.