Sydney Albertini (b.1973, Paris) is a French multidisciplinary artist based in Amagansett, Long Island, whose artwork explores the themes and techniques normally associated with what society calls ‘women’s craft.’
Albertini creates both two-dimensional works, in the form of large painted drawings, embroideries quilts and weavings, and three-dimensional pieces, with a focus on traditional fibre techniques such as knits and fabrics. Vividly colourful and irreverently abstract, Albertini’s works are full of energy and movement, with even the subjects of her paintings seeming to wriggle off the canvas. Every new series of works continues to explore relationships both strictly visual (flat versus volume and time) and emotional (man versus woman, individual versus society).
The Movement series strips away all elements of classical representational painting and focuses on what is usually considered pure embellishments. Here, the decorative features are given the centre stage. The colours and patterns interact with one another creating visuals of energy and emotion. This dynamic symbiosis merges the line between figurative and abstraction.
The Botanicals series evokes all that is extraordinary in this world. Flora holds constant mystery for Albertini as it embodies strength and beauty in the most complex ways while simultaneously offering immediate aesthetic pleasure for the eye. All pieces are narratives of space based on the tight relationship between each element weaving movement, shape, and colour. They are entirely imagined and inspired by Albertini's recollection of walks and road trips. The patterns, the combination of colours, and the intermingling shapes represent this complex yet beautiful phenomenon of plant life.
Albertini attended the Atelier de Sèvres in Paris and then studied fresco painting at the International Studio Art Centre in Florence. “In Italy, I learned how to do frescoes, so it was all about colours and narrative,” she says. “The narrative focus from the Italian Renaissance completely influenced me. My work is based in that same aspect: piecing things together to tell a story.” She then moved to New York in 2002 to study fine art at Parsons School of Design and she showed with Ille Arts and Ashawagh Hall, Duck Creek Arts Centre, and the Parrish Museum. Her work is held in many USA private and public art collections, such as the Parrish Art Museum, Southampton, USA and Guild Hall in East Hampton, USA.