In Brooklyn-based artist Jocelyn Hobbie’s paintings (previously featured here), the figure serves as an anchor. From there, she starts to piece everything together, giving equal attention to each element, whether it’s a face, petal, or pattern. “Even though my paintings have a certain finish and deliberateness, they aren’t planned out,” she explains. “It’s very much about discovery and invention.” Born from her imagination, the environments she creates are thick with activity—plants and patterns crammed together in a blend of representation and abstraction. Hobbie likens this coalescence to the makeup of a tide pool: “it all becomes textures and colors, but everything is quite particular and distinct.” The quality and feel of the painting itself is everything for her: “Visuality is the primary value, an end in itself,” she says. “I guess I’m after an experience that’s sensual, with the possibility of delight. My choice to paint women points to histories & complexities beyond the frame.”

See more from Jocelyn Hobbie below!