Chelsea Hantken

Location: Australia Web: www.pollypixels.deviantart.com Email: chelsea.hantken@hotmail.com Softwa re: Photoshop

Chelsea says each of her portraits is a self-portrait. It’s something she’s only just realised. “There’s a deeper meaning to my portraiture,” the Adelaide artist says, “and I didn’t see it for a long time.”

While her artwork is digital, using textured paper and her own brushes – “many created from scanned images of paint splatters created myself” – there’s a traditional feel underpinning her work.

“My inspirations definitely stem from a love of romance, femininity, empowerment and emotion,” Chelsea says. “Makeup, celebrities and fashion design are also huge influences in my creative process.”

2 3 1 1 Petal s & thorns “Even if love is full of thorns, I still embrace it. I know that in between those thorns, there’s a rose that’s worth all the pain. This is the most fragile portrait I’ve drawn and yet one with the least number of colours....