Make 2020 the Year You Discover Your Favorite Artist
There’s nothing better than finding an artist whose work speaks to you. At Saatchi Art, we make it our mission to help you discover and buy from the best emerging artists around the world. Our team of expert curators have compiled this list of 20 up-and-coming artists you should consider collecting this year.
Sanja Milenkovic
“By setting small, ambiguous figures against richly textured backgrounds, Sanja uses the visual vocabulary of memory to create surreal and energetic scenes.”
– Monty Preston, Associate Curator
Light in Arizona
Lene Bladbjerg
“With a background in graphic design, Lene’s work is set apart by her ability to distill natural beauty and thought-provoking messages into simple, clean design.”
– Megan Wright, Assistant Curator
Bordered Sulphur Butterfly
Kristin Moore
“Kristin’s landscapes set industrial structures and fast food restaurants against expansive skies, turning these quotidian scenes into compositions that are both lighthearted and sublime.”
– Aurora Garrison, Assistant Curator
I-35 South
Marcus Aitken
“Marcus’ rigorous design background shines through in his creative process—building up and distressing multiple layers of pigment on wood panels, and then applying expressive brushstrokes—ultimately yielding expertly balanced and dramatic compositions.”
– Rebecca Wilson, Chief Curator & VP
Taylor Smith
“Taylor combines silkscreen, photography, and painting techniques to make conceptually-packed works that remark on pop culture, politics, and technology.”
– Victoria Kennedy, Associate Curator
Mickey Mouse Disaster
Khaled Morad
“Khaled combines natural materials, patterns, and narrative traditions from his native Egypt with the formal sensibilities of Western Modernism to make bold iconographic works.”
– Monty Preston, Associate Curator
The Book Believer
Francesca Dalla Benetta
“Drawing on her experience as a set designer and special effects artist, Francesca creates surrealist, hybrid figures that startle the viewer with their visceral presence.”
– Aurora Garrison, Assistant Curator
Mi Casa Es Tu Casa
Mila Morton
“Mila draws inspiration from patterns in nature, iconographic traditions, and Chinese ink landscapes in her exploration of pattern and mark making. In doing so, her works grapple with the limits of representation and the potential for marks and symbols to take on new meaning.”
– Megan Wright, Assistant Curator
Tyler Guinn
“Tyler’s large-scale works show how attuned he is to the traditions and techniques of abstract expressionism. The balanced fields of color and surprising texture consistently draw the viewer in.”
– Monty Preston, Associate Curator
Love Came Down No. 2
Eddie Love
“Drawing on street art and neo-expressionism, Eddie has developed a prolific body of assertive and energetic work, which he has exhibited across the Southern United States over the past decade.”
– Rebecca Wilson, Chief Curator & VP
Scavenger Culture
Baldvin Ringsted
“Inspired by the sweeping landscapes of his native Iceland and drawing on his background in music, Baldvin explores the tension between structure and spontaneity, creating paintings that are both dizzying and precise.”
– Victoria Kennedy, Associate Curator
Venus Smiles
Heather Blanton
“Heather’s synchronistic works capture the human spirit’s collective love of sports and proclivity for action and competition.”
– Aurora Garrison, Assistant Curator
Alejandro Aboli
“Alejandro digitally manipulates his photographs into playful, whimsical scenes that blur the line between imagination and reality.”
– Victoria Kennedy, Associate Curator
Egg Mandarin
Kathryn Knudsen
“Kathryn transforms textiles, beads, paint, and found materials into joyful and unexpected compositions, employing a tactility that seeks to reduce the space between our world and utopia.”
– Megan Wright, Assistant Curator
Buster
David McGlothlin
“David’s work is an amalgam of art historical influences. With undeniable passion and technical precision, David re-energizes time-honored techniques and subject matter.”
– Rebecca Wilson, Chief Curator & VP
Isabella #2
Mark Petty
“Mark translates elements of pop and consumer culture into dazzling screen prints. Often hand-painted with diamond dust and gold leaf, the everyday objects in Mark’s work take on totemic, sacred auras.”
– Monty Preston, Associate Curator
Nina Lance
“As a former fashion designer and professional photographer, Nina brings her eye for color and structure to her art practice, which spans sparse figure drawings and energetic abstract paintings.”
– Monty Preston, Associate Curator
Forma 001
Anna McNeil
“Anna’s vibrant, gestural figures emerge from the boundary between abstraction and representation, where she explores how our memories and perceptions shape meaning and narrative truth.”
– Aurora Garrison, Associate Curator
Untitled (Amigas)
Cristian Armenta
“Cristian applies paint with his hands, knives, and found industrial materials. His direct and highly physical process results in bold works that capture a range of emotions and movements.”
– Megan Wright, Assistant Curator
Voyeur
Helena Pallares
“Combining drawing with digital and handmade collage techniques, Helena creates graphic compositions that are striking in their ability to capture a subject through minimal form.”
– Victoria Kennedy, Associate Curator