Grace Netanya

Medusa

Graphite, marker, colored pencil, ink, glitter and acrylic varnish

“Medusa is a complex character whose identity as a villain or hero is ambiguous, varying based on which version of her myth you hear, and based on who tells it. Medusa is the only one of the gorgons, powerful female demigods, to be mortal. The cost of this vulnerability is that she is ultimately slain, her head used by a male ‘hero’ as a weapon. Similar to a dragon guarding treasure, Medusa’s destruction is justified simply by being of benefit to the protagonist of the story.

Medusa, although often portrayed as beautiful, is also consistently painted or carved as screaming with rage. Her terrifying visage is deeply embedded in our cultural subconscious, associated with iconic works of art. I wanted my interpretation of this myth to humanize Medusa. Instead of using Medusa’s mane of snakes to demonize her, I instead aim to depict her ‘monstrousness’ as beautiful and glamorous. I used over a dozen custom varnishes in order to give each snake a unique texture.”

— Grace Netanya

About the artist

Grace Netanya

American

Grace Netanya is an artist and storyteller whose art combines contemporary and traditional ideas to create an art fusion that is both Avant-Garde and introspective. At a very young age, Grace taught herself to draw in order to communicate stories and characters from her imagination. A childhood of homeschooling in Florida provided her with the time and isolation to become engrossed in her imagination, and today she is interested in pulling the magical and surreal out of the ordinary and banal. Grace is interested in putting unique spins on existing styles and finding new ways to push a medium past the conceived limit. She prefers to use mixed-media techniques with ink, graphite, colored pencils and acrylics. However, she loves to discover new mediums and is constantly expanding her repertoire. Grace’s unique combination of colorful fantasy and realism has caught the eyes of the art world both at home and internationally. She had her first exhibit at the age of fourteen, at MOAS FL, and has exhibited with such prestigious organizations as The ARC Realism Salon and The Colored Pencil Society. She has won many awards, such as The Copic Award Grand Prize 2019, 2022 Martha Vineyard’s Drawing Prize 1st place, and most recently, Boyne’s Artist Prize 2022 Second Place. Her work has also been published with imaginative art publications such as Infected by Art and Supersonicart.com