VIRGINIA BEACH — It’s not often fans of art can get up close and personal with the artists who create the art they love and talk to them about it.
Area residents will have the opportunity to gain insight into the art, the artist, and the process she uses on May 18 when the Museum of Contemporary Art brings New York Artist Inka Essenhigh to Virginia Beach for an evening of conversation, questions, and answers.
“Inka Essenhigh will be speaking about her incredible career as one the leading contemporary artists working today,” said Sallie Wiggins, spokeswoman for MOCA. “She will discuss what has inspired her vision and will encourage questions and remarks from the audience.”
Through Aug. 19 MOCA is hosting an exhibit of Essenhigh’s work, which according to her website can be described as “painted visions (that) are richly colored distorted fables peopled with archetypes, sprites, and anthropomorphized nature.”
The ocean becomes a sea monster while a tree becomes a goddess, and hipster bar-goers become drunken ghouls.
Wiggins said the event will be an evening of both art and of community.
Essenhigh has been exhibiting her work for 20 years and has taken part in shows at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, a show at the Royal Academy of Arts in London, and the Second Berlin Biennale in Germany.
