ABOUT
Charlotte Schembri is a multidisciplinary artist who lives and works in Austin, TX. Charlotte creates geometrical and neon paintings with an ode to optical illusions and also creates portraiture photos infused with abstract notions. She is drawn to shapes, contrast, and clean lines.
She also finds her inspiration and her canvas in the world of charcoal drawings. Her work is a testament to the timeless elegance of black and white, where beauty and emotion emerge from the depths of the monochromatic spectrum. With meticulous attention to detail, she creates hauntingly lifelike landscapes that captivate the viewer's soul.
HER
STORY
I’ve been making art for as long as I can remember. As a kid, I was always drawing, painting, or participating in crafts with my family and friends. We would buy art supplies at Michael’s and then create our crafts during sleepovers. I always looked forward to taking art classes in elementary school as it was my favorite subject. Whenever my classmates and I would work on projects, they would look at my work and tell me that my drawings or paintings looked really good. Those compliments helped me strive to become better at drawing and to always push myself. For some reason, I was obsessed with drawing homes and families. Because I always drew homes, my teachers suggested that maybe I become an architect when I got older. But as I got older, I soon realized that it took more math than it did design (math was not my strong suit).
Once I reached middle school and high school, I had the option to take more advanced art classes. In these advanced art classes, not only was I able to build my skills as an artist, but I also got to learn all about the history of art. I was completely mind-blown at how long humans have been making art and all the different art movements throughout history. Seeing how far I’ve come building my skills and learning about different styles of art, I knew that art school was my path into college. Knowing that I wanted to go to art school, I took AP classes and tested out of them to gain college credit ahead of time. It helped me get a semester ahead!
Throughout my college career, I learned how to make art using many different mediums, including drawing, painting, photography, and print-making. Each medium has its own unique qualities and gives a certain meaning to the work you create. Going into college, photography wasn't my favorite medium, but after working with film, I fell in love with it. I used my photography skills in almost all of my projects. Being able to take portraits on my camera and reusing them to create interesting drawings and prints was so fun and made all of my work connect. My professors also taught me that meaning, not just skill, is what makes a good piece of art. Knowing that a concept or a story can make or break a piece of work, I developed my voice as an artist through writing artist statements and speaking about my work during critiques with my classmates and professors.
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​I use everything I’ve learned throughout my childhood and at the University of Texas with my work and my clients. My family and friends ask me to do commission pieces now, which helps me build my referral base. I’ve also had the opportunity to sell my work online through SAATCHI. Knowing that people from around the world can purchase my artwork is an amazing feeling. It’s also helped me gain confidence knowing my work is strong (in both design and meaning) to apply for art shows.
