Hi! I’m Giesla, a multidisciplinary artist residing in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
I feel like there's an unspoken pressure to be elaborate yet succinct with an about page, and I find it extraordinarily difficult to boil everything about me down into the perfect bite-sized description. In all honesty, I find it difficult to describe anything about me at all, which is a condition called alexithymia. Maybe that's a good place to start.
My entire life I've struggled to weave my way through a societal structure that was not built for how my brain works. I didn't know why this was until very recently when I began learning about neurodivergence. It put my life into sharp focus, which was both painful and a relief. Knowing why I struggle doesn't change the fact that I do, it just makes it a bit easier to explain it to people. Embracing my complexity has been challenging, but over time I’ve come to recognize that my endless curiosity and multifaceted perspective are the driving forces behind my work. They have inspired me to explore a wide variety of mediums and themes for over 20 years.
I began my artistic career in 2002 working with digital collage, focusing primarily on the importance of place. Influenced by an artist known for their expressive paintings of local scenes, I layered and blended my own photographs of landmarks and various locations to create complex, inviting compositions that kindled the memories, stories, and emotions tied to the places we love.
From 2002 to 2016 I participated in numerous art fairs throughout the Midwest. My work was carried by retailers and galleries in the Twin Cities and licensed by puzzle manufacturers Ravensburger and Buffalo Games for nationwide distribution in stores such as Target and Barnes & Noble. I also received numerous private and public commissions. In 2017, I departed the art fair circuit; shifting into freelance graphic design. I continued to sell my collage work online through Etsy in addition to creating private commissions for national and international clients.
After several significant life transitions encouraged me to evaluate my identity, I felt compelled to make more personal, expressive artwork. This prompted a shift toward working with animation and video, which are now my primary focus along with projection mapping.
My animation work centers around my experience with navigating a society that’s not designed for the way my brain works. I blend geometric shapes inspired by the textures, patterns, and movements of the natural world with themes of spirituality and the passage of time to evoke the qualities of simplicity, ease, and flow.
In contrast, my video work is guided by a fascination with the jagged edges of humanity and weighty topics such as the societal impacts of information abundance and artificial intelligence. To convey the depth and messiness of these topics, I draw inspiration from glitch art and incorporate the layering techniques that were used in my digital collage.
My obsession with color and light combined with the awe I experience when they transform a surface is what led me to projection mapping. Its ephemeral quality encourages a connection to the present moment and invites reflection, making it an ideal medium for the themes of my work. It aligns with my desire to encourage people to step away from the content on their screens and engage with art in the physical world.
It's been a joy learning how to combine my existing skills with new ones to discover fresh ways of expressing themes I’m passionate about. I’m currently experimenting with combining analog and digital techniques with the intention of emphasizing the need for a more critical, reflective approach to technology—one that fosters deeper connections with ourselves, others, and the natural world.
I love all things illuminated! For the Oogie Boogie Halloween Bash at Disneyland, I made this costume of Jerry from the Pixar movie Soul with EL wire.