Thursday, December 17 | 1:00 – 3:00pm
Location: Lenox Hill Neighborhood House, 331 East 70th Street, New York, NY
Free Workshop
Limited to 12 participants. If you require any accessibility accommodations, please let us know at info@residencyunlimited.org when you RSVP and we will be happy to assist.
RSVP required.
In this workshop led by Mia Enell (2019 RU Alum), participants will explore the strange, unexpected, and dreamlike through drawing. We’ll begin with a brief introduction to Surrealist art, then transform images, colors, memories, feelings, fleeting ideas and inspiration from nature that stay engraved in the mind into surrealist compositions.
Participants are encouraged to bring a note or simple sketch that has been lingering with you—or simply come as you are—and use pencil, paper, and watercolor to give your imagination a visual form.
This initiative is part of a series of 20 workshops designed to provide post residency support to RU’s local alumni artists. Curated by alum curator Hayley Ferber, the workshops are centered on the theme of creative engagement with the natural environment, inviting participants to explore processes of reuse, observation, material experimentation, and collective making.
About
Born in 1967 in Gothenburg, Sweden, Mia Enell‘s parents were both artists (painters). Enell is a graduate from Nyckelvik Art School in Stockholm (1987) and received her DSNAP (MFA equivalent) from ENSBA the “Beaux-Arts” in Paris (1992). Enell is an interdisciplinary artist working primarily in painting and drawing as well as photography, video, installation and sculpture. Although she makes use of different media, Enell approaches her work with the internal logic of a painter. She is best known for her paintings and drawings, depicting the eccentricities of her inner life, often with humor and a surrealist bent. Visions, haiku-like phrases – inspired by dreams, surrounding life or drawn from the unconscious, are part of the work:Enell likes to play with words, which features prominently in many of her works.
Select exhibitions include: UP&CO-EK STUDIO, Düsseldorf (2026); Bienvenu, Steinberg & C (2025 and 2022); Sorbonne University Art Gallery, Paris, FR (2024); Nino Mier Bruxelles (2023); TIAB – The Immigrant Artist Biennial, New York, NY(2023); Drawing Biennial, Drawing Room, London, UK (2021); C.O.D. – Center for Openness and Dialogue, Tirana, Albania (2018); Arena Vestfossen, Norway (2013); Kulturhuset, Stockholm, Sweden (2011); Third Streaming, New York, NY (2011); Colgate University Museum, Hamilton, NY (2006); Hellenic Museum, Chicago, IL (2006); The New York Public Library, New York, NY (2006); Nordic Heritage Museum, Seattle, WA (2004); Delegation of European Commission, Washington D.C. (2004); ENSBA-Quai Malaquis (2000); Centre Régional d’Art Contemporain, Sète, France (1999); Caisse des dépôts et Consignations, Paris (1999,1998); Espace Paul Richard, Paris (1999), Independent Center for Art & Photography, Paris (1997). She is a recipient of honors such as The Elfi von Kantzow Alvin Art Award (2021) and The American-Scandinavian Society, Cultural Grant Award (2004).
Represented by Bienvenu, Steinberg &C, 35 Walker Street, New York City www.bsandcgallery.com/ IG: miaenellart
This project is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.
In-kind support is provided by Materials for the Arts.
RU is grateful for the partnership with Lenox Hill Neighborhood House.
