Infernalis | Tara Sellios

Tara Sellios | Studio Visit, Boston

Infernalis is a series of painterly still life photographs created by Boston artist and photographer Tara Sellios, using real insects, animal skeletons and other organic matter to establish a visual sense of the frantic beauty inherent in the natural world. Her work depicts how it often manifests itself in a simultaneously terrifying and spectacular manner. Shot with 8x10 color film, the photographs are intended to be presented larger than life, in the vein of altarpiece paintings that have been prevalent throughout art history, like The Antwerp Crucifixion of Antonello da Messina at the Royal Museum in Antwerp.

“I have always thought of my work as theater or as a book, with each series being an act or a chapter. Prior to Testimony, the content of my work was fleshy and lush, using wine and blood as frequent allegorical symbols inspired by Bacchanalia and Christian iconography (my series called Luxuria). Infernalis is a continuation of past series, called Testimony into a new narrative world where the feast has dried up and carnal pleasure has subsided. The wine is replaced by dirt and the flesh has withered away to the bone in a seemingly apocalyptic way. Insects, including moths, beetles, and locusts are significant characters, multiplying throughout the series and eventually overtaking the tableaux. They introduce a heightened sense of the primal instinct present in the natural world and the coexisting fear, vulnerability and wonder felt from encountering something so powerful and wild, “ says Sellios. “End of the world imagery from art history has been a source of inspiration for this series. These works possess a dramatic, eccentric, visceral chaos which can be alluded to the condition of existence in the world. Last Judgement paintings often depict skies filled with constellations of falling or flying angels, creatures and demons, which has become referential for the composition of insects in my work.

Infernalis | Detail, Tara Sellios

As artists in the Baroque period did, I intend to arouse an internal response in the viewer by making imagery that marries the harsh and intense with the elegant and seductive”, she continues.

Sellios’ artwork is highly process-oriented.

Before photographing, preliminary watercolor sketches are made of the scene to establish the concept visually. The insects used are dried specimens acquired from collectors across the globe. Arriving brittle and fragile, they must go through a process of re-hydration and are mounted into the new shape, which gives them a sense of life and movement. Skeletons are acquired from natural history purveyors that specialize in custom bone articulation. The actual arrangement of the still life scene, a precise, sculptural endeavor, is photographed using her 8 x10 color film and natural light, exquisitely measured. The large format allows for immense detail and the potential for mural size prints, which is crucial to the presentation of these photographs.

Tara Sellios' international relationships in the art community are instrumental in furthering her breadth as an artist. She recently announced participation in the Open Artelier, an art collective based in Italy with the aim of creating a pulsating and thriving space, both physical and virtual. Tara is currently in the beginning stages of planning an exhibition of her work at the museum in Italy later this year. Several years ago, she participated in an art exchange with the same organizers in Como, Italy and is excited to have the opportunity to show in Italy again, "where a lot of the art that inspires me actually lives", she says. For more information, follow her Instagram @tarasellios and on her website tarasellios.com.

We encourage you to visit her website and look at everything. Follow her and keep her in your sights. We believe she has just begun.

Sellios is scheduled for an upcoming solo show at Fitchburg Art Museum in the spring of 2024. The show will consist of photographs, drawings, sculpture and installation. This will be Tara’s first museum show. Process of the exhibit can be seen on her Instagram account.