About Stephanie Aguilar

Artist's Statement

My artwork is full of push and pull.  I paint figurative subjects, mostly birds and animals, against abstracted backgrounds.  I also enjoy playing with natural beauty set against ideas of man-made beauty -- birds wearing couture headpieces or a longhorn standing in front of a wall-papered backdrop.  When painting with oil paints I like to soften and add light to my paintings by using rags to wipe off almost as much paint as I apply.  With my acrylic paintings I mix colors directly on the canvas and let these swirling patterns drive my pallet.  Color is always a large part of my work -- I am constantly experimenting.  Loose brushstrokes are also important, I use those to convey movement and joy.  My process is an exercise in frustration and a source of great satisfaction -- I can’t imagine it any other way.

Background

Stephanie Aguilar earned her BA at The University of Illinois in Interior Design and worked for architectural and interior design firms for 15 years in various American cities with international reputations for their notable architecture and design.  She designed at Environments Group in Chicago, Ellerbe Beckett in Los Angeles, and Burkett design and Studio Collaborative in Denver.  Her best-known interior projects include the Ahmanson Theatre redesign (L.A.) and the Sheriff’s Department (L.A.), the advertising company Frankel & Company (Chicago), her own employer’s relocated office (Environments Group, Chicago), the Perkins Coie new law offices (Denver), the Ronald McDonald House (Denver), and the global headquarters for the nonprofit Water for People (Denver). 

As a professional artist for the past 12 years, Stephanie participates in art festivals around Colorado and has displayed her paintings in various Denver galleries, including New Core Art Space and the Niza Knoll Gallery.  She has artwork hanging at various hospitals and heath care facilities in Colorado including Children's Hospital in the Denver and Colorado Springs areas.  She won a commission for a large memorial piece created for Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children at Presbyterian St. Luke’s, and worked closely with the memorial committee to create the mural on public display in memory of neonatologist Dr. Robyn Rairigh.  Stephanie also owned and operated ekkoprints, LLC for seven years, translating her original artwork onto fabrics and home furnishings, and coordinating various suppliers, local seamstresses and printing companies.  She has been painting, designing and creating her entire life, always experimenting with techniques and exploring color, taking inspiration from her travels throughout Europe and its legendary art museums, and, as often as she can, painting true to her mantra, “The bigger the better.”

PUBLIC ARTWORK

Eating Recovery Center, Denver - "Honey", “You’re Mine” & “Follow the Leader”

Children's Hospital, Broomfield Location - "Dewey"

Children's Hospital, Denver Location- "Juliet"

Children's Hospital, Colorado Springs Location, "Brown Bunny" & "Blonde Bunny"

Presbyterian St. Luke’s Hospital – “The Robyn’s Nest Project” memorial mural, “Of Course,” “Solo” & “Simon Says”