Elizabeth Malaska harnesses her creative process to explore the metaphorical universe of the soul in an effort to puncture and uncover Western patriarchal perspectives of identity. Drawing inspiration from traditional painting, mythology, nature, literature, and embodied experience, Malaska’s subjects traverse the spiritual pathways between human beings, animals, plants, and inanimate objects to engage modern subjectivities built upon empathy, connection, and reverie.
Elizabeth Malaska (b. 1978, Portland, OR) earned her BFA from California College of the Arts and her MFA in Visual Studies from Pacific Northwest College of Art. She is a 2021 Guggenheim Fellow, as well as the recipient of a Painter's and Sculptor's Grant from the Joan Mitchell Foundation and the Hallie Ford Fellowship from The Ford Family Foundation. Malaska's work is in the permanent collection at the Portland Art Museum, the Schneider Musuem of Art, and the Hallie Ford Museum. Her work has been featured in Ms.Magazine, Art in America, ArtForum, and ArtMaze among others. She lives and works in Portland, OR.