Mar Vol. 4 Print

Akvile Les is a painter who lives and works in London. Working in lipsticks and mixed media on canvas and paper, her highly expressive works are characterised by their bright hues and fashion inspired scenes. Akvile uses various lipstick tones from corals to strawberry and deep burgundy shades, then adds some watercolour and acrylic to fill in the forms. Her loose, illustrative style of painting is intuitive, heightening the emotionality of her pieces. Akvile’s works emphasise the cultural change of the post-soviet generation through consumerism and self-fashioning. Coming from a post-soviet country which regained its independence shortly after the artist was born, the artist did not grow up with the consumerism – it slowly grew up with her. Image construction, sociological approach to fashion and style objects are the main narratives documented in her work. Her extensive training in traditional painting allows Akvile to create art with an acute sense for contemporary culture and societal changes. This research, started in Vilnius Academy of Arts and fueled by working with fashion and luxury brands, eventually started dictating appropriate means of expression; the artist replaced the traditional oil painting with sheer, transparent watercolor and lipsticks. ​Selected clients: Kiko Milano, Lipton, Magnum, Mandarin Oriental, Moët & Chandon, Philips, Selfridges & Co