Meet the Artist: Angie Goto

Bold, expressive and bright are three words that have become synonymous with Angie Goto’s work. Based in Sydney, Angie creates colourful visual representations of how she feels on canvas, drawing on her experience as a Deaf artist. Angie uses her talents to enrich the arts sector as both a creator and an educator, and we’re thrilled to introduce her as our campaign artist for both Affordable Art Fair Melbourne and Hong Kong, 2021. Keep reading to learn more about Angie’s artistic practice and inspirations.

We’re absolutely delighted to have your artwork ‘Summer Blues’ as our campaign creative for Affordable Art Fair Melbourne and Hong Kong. Can you tell us how you discovered painting and what led you to become an artist?

I’m thrilled to have my artwork chosen, thank you! Growing up as the only Deaf person in my family, I always felt drawn to activities that were perhaps more creative or visual. Television didn’t interest me growing up as there were no captioned programs at the time. I was always a very creative child and completely fell in love with painting. I always knew I would be an artist; art is just so visual. Painting is like a visual language to me; it is my way of expressing myself and how I am feeling.

Your artworks are often brightly coloured and gestural. Do you plan out how you want a particular piece to look before you start, or does the artwork emerge during the process?

I tend to have an idea or concept in my head when I first start an artwork, however, often as I paint, the idea adjusts or changes. It is very dependent on the mood I am in at the time as to how the artwork will evolve. I always feel like I am going on a bit of a journey with my paintings, it starts out with a clear path, and I often deviate and go off track and end up quite pleased once I arrive at the final destination. I get really excited by the process of the journey itself, I feel like that’s when my best paintings come to life – when I truly am enjoying that journey.

How would you describe a typical day in your studio?

I don’t really have a typical day in the studio, the days are really quite varied. I definitely find I can’t force myself to be in the studio. I need to be in the right mood to be on that journey of art making. Once I am in the right headspace in the studio, I never leave! Quite often I will lose track of time, even forgetting to eat as I am so focused and absorbed in my creative process.

How has being an Art Educator at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney influenced your creative practice?

Being an Art Educator has been a brilliant experience for me, I am constantly learning from so many different artists and other educators too. They inspire and support me, and I always feel I know I am on the right journey with my practice. With such a great team, I am always inspired by others, and it is definitely great to be surrounded by so many creative people. Building connections and networking has been wonderful too and has really influenced my creative practice.

Can you tell us about some of your recent artworks?

The artwork ‘Disquiet (Anxiety trying to lipread a full conversation)’ is about the anxiety that comes with a Deaf person who is trying to lipread a full conversation. Especially long conversations with multiple people. As a Deaf person, I have feelings of wanting to interrupt and take a breather or ask questions but feeling like you can’t or don’t know when you can jump in and add your thoughts to the conversation. This artwork is a visual representation of the feeling that comes with being involved in conversations that aren’t in your preferred language every day, it is a constant jigsaw puzzle trying to work out what everyone is saying. This is exactly why I love Auslan, it is a completely visual language and I feel so able to comfortably communicate.

‘Jangled Nerves (after wearing cochlear implant)’ is an abstract self-portrait after I got the cochlear implant. As a Deaf person, at the end of each day I feel very fatigued and on edge, I am ‘Jangled Nerves’. This is a visual representation of how I feel. The wider community sees my cochlear implant and assumes it is a ‘cure’ or a ‘fix’, but that is not the case. I am still Deaf, even with a cochlear implant, it certainly helps in some situations, but it is actually quite a lot of hard work trying to process sounds and work out where they are coming from. I have a love/hate relationship with my cochlear implant. I love being in the Deaf world and using Auslan, it’s where I am truly most comfortable and I don’t tend to have the ‘Jangled Nerves’ after a day in the deaf world.

What are some of your favourite pastimes? Are you reading anything at the moment?

I love to read a lot of art books after a long day’s work. I just recently bought Ken Done’s book which is a real treat for myself. Ken Done is such a huge inspiration for me. I also love to visit art exhibitions with friends, catch up and socialise with other artists and talk everything art-related over a glass of wine.

Do you buy art yourself?

I don’t tend to buy a lot of art as I feel very lucky to have so many talented artist friends and we actually swap each other’s artworks. This way I am able to enjoy a lot of art, without paying the price tag some of the art can come with!

As an artist, what are the benefits or working with a gallery?

For me, working with galleries and being represented by them is extremely beneficial, it takes off some of the pressures of selling and lets me focus more on the painting, which I love! Having someone support me and sell paintings on my behalf means I have more time to paint, and I love having my paintings exhibited in galleries all over Australia. The exposure is great, and I love the support and networks that the galleries provide, it means my artwork gets seen by more people.

We can’t wait to see Angie’s new pieces exhibited with Tusk Gallery at Affordable Art Fair Melbourne (2 – 5 September). We’re very excited to have Georgie and Gary Collier of Tusk Gallery join us as returning exhibitors after their success at Affordable Art Fair Melbourne 2019. For more information about Melbourne or Hong Kong (26 – 29 August), follow the links below.

Main image: Angie Goto’s artwork ‘Summer Blues’ is Affordable Art Fair’s campaign image for Melbourne and Hong Kong, 2021