Can you tell us a little about yourself?
Carly Faber is one of thirteen artists selected as a Gallery 263 Small Works Project artist. This project presents artwork in flat files at the gallery and on our website. Visit Faber’s Small Works Project page →
My name is Carly Faber. I’m an Illustrator, Educator, and Jeweler from Massachusetts. I currently work as an art teacher in a Lowell middle school. As their teacher, I work with students to create fun and unique art inspired by art from around the world. In my free time, I create art.
What kind of art do you make?
I’m inspired by narratives when I create art. I’ll pull from stories I’ve written in my head or existing stories when I’m looking for a place to start on a new piece. From there I begin thumbnailing and eventually drawing or painting the piece. I usually create these pieces as brightly colored, small, detailed paintings using gouache or marker. When creating my art I use extremely small brushes sometimes a few mm wide so I can achieve the amount of detail I like in my work.
What concepts does your art explore?
My art plays with concepts of how societal norms have come to shape my own understanding of
femininity. As I’ve grown up I’ve come to reject and reframe gender presentions. my art draws from
mythologies and biblical stories to explore the way women and minorities are depicted and treated in
these contexts.
Can you tell us about the work you have on view in your flat file drawer at the gallery?
I’ve always been driven by a love for drawing the human figure. So this series has very much been
inspired by and centered around bodies and their diversity. I wanted to explore conformity by squeezing these figures into very tight spaces. But, I find the results very tender, as though the series almost pushes against this conformity and instead becomes an expression of self-love.
Where do you make your work?
I make art in my apartment. I have a small desk set up on one side of my bedroom and I surround it with inspiration. So, my current studio is surrounded by as much art and as many knickknacks as I could fit into the space.