Janie Askew’s work is a ballad of vulnerability, fantasy, and eroticism. The titles of her artwork read like a science fiction index: "Blithering Sacks," "Chicken Liver Smear," "Blood Brainlessly," "Organs and Sirenomelia*" (cue me fumbling through a dictionary—see below). As Did Dunphy suggests, “Askew grabs you, shakes you up and leaves you just astounded. The tightly feminist gaze and her uber-skilled hand generate outstanding drawn works, complex in their abstract forms, interwoven bodies, textural intensity, and social political accusations.”  

In Askew’s series “Blithering Sacks,” the artist creates the story of life in the womb, a place of vulnerability. She imagines it dark and filled with all things complicated and vile. With laborious lines and tight formats, Askew depicts a series of the human form warping and wringing in angst. “In the womb and beyond, we are blood streaked and stained, a blithering sack of all things abject,” says the artist.

In this series, one can immediately see her advanced technical skills. Similar to De Kooning, her expressive use of washed color runs counter to the traditional technique of applying the darkest pigments first, then layering lighter pigments to build forms and create highlights. In particular, in the work on paper “Guts,” Askew applies aggressive yet delicate lines and strategically places key colors to create the shapes of a fetus with bulging eyes and exaggerated characteristics.  

Askew’s works have a certain power--they are magnetic, kinetic and often complex.  Combining skill and imagination, this is an artist at her vulgar and virtuosic best.

Janie Askew received her MFA in printmaking from the University of Georgia and her BFA in printmaking from East Carolina University. She has been featured in Creative Quarterly and The Journal of Art and Design and has exhibited at the Bradley International Print Exhibition among other venues. She is the current director of Redux Contemporary Arts Center.

*Sirenomelia:  alternatively known as Mermaid Syndrome is a very rare congenital deformity in which the legs are fused together, giving them the appearance of a mermaid's tail.

(Janie Askew photo by Chloe Gilstrap)