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Want to have a stake in the art gallery of tomorrow? Rise Art is excited to launch its second crowdfunding  campaign - and you can get in on the action.

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In the last two years Rise Art has grown from a small UK focussed business to a global technology platform, shipping art to over 60 countries around the world. In 2017 we launched some of our biggest initiatives to date. We brought Great Art to Everybody when human canvases painted as famous artworks descended on the streets of London in a bid to highlight Britain’s disconnect with art.

We also launched the inaugural Rise Art Prize, a global competition to unearth the most exciting contemporary artists from around the world, judged by some of the biggest names in art like Gavin Turk, Harland Miller, Fiona Banner and David Bailey. And we brought our roster of extraordinary artists up to over 1,000.

Now we have our sights set on even bigger things, with international expansion into Asia on the horizon. With China being the second biggest art market in the world, the region presents a major opportunity to grow our business and reach new artists and audiences. We also want to bring better storytelling around our incredible artists to you, and improve our technology to make it even easier to discover and buy great art.

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We’re giving everyone the chance to be part of our mission, to bring great art to everybody and to share in our success. Investment is open from as little as £10 and there are some  pretty cool rewards on offer, including VIP invites to events and discounts on orders. Invest over £25,000 and you’ll be invited to join the Rise Art Supper Club, a pop up evening featuring great food alongside collectors and artists in an intimate setting.

Learn more about the fundraise and all our rewards by visiting www.riseart.com/invest.

Investments of this nature carry risks to your capital. Please Invest Aware.

Marleen Pauwels’s paintings are hauntingly beautiful. Her semi-transparent figures embody the fragility of human life, their ghostly bodies set in isolation and silence against stark backdrops and empty spaces. 

Marleen in her studio with Swimteam.

The Belgian artist plays with scale to explore the human condition. By stretching and squashing her figures, Marleen pushes the essence of the human body to absurd limits. “I know my work is finished,” says the artist, “when it moves me in every way”.

Wrong Story

When did you know you wanted to become an artist?

I think I’ve always been an artist. I’ve been drawing for as long as I can remember. My parents were art collectors, so I’ve been surrounded by art since childhood.Losing myself in any kind of creative expression has been a driving force throughout my life.

Marleen's studio in the South of Spain.

What is the significance behind your figures?

My figures express my perceptions of the world. They reflect the solitude and loneliness of human beings. Stripping them back from any realm of beauty, I want to show their power to go back to the essence of what we are. I deliberately place them in empty, abandoned spaces away from any unnecessary adornments.

The doctor will see you now

Your canvases themselves are interesting too. Can you tell us what materials you use to build them up?

Over the years my style has evolved across various mediums, including etching, drawing, collage and oil paint. My canvases are wooden panels layered with materials like newsprint, sand, acrylics and oil paints. I always leave carefully chosen text layers visible.

Marleen working on Swimteam.

Can you take us through your methods and process?

Much of my work starts with a sentence that I’ve read in a book or newspaper, an image that’s caught my eye, or an event that has struck me. I begin sketching around an idea before I start painting. I find I need to do plenty of studies and sketches to arrive at one that hits the point.

Marleen's sketch books.

Walls often form the background of my images - but always with a door or window open, inviting the viewer to look beyond the first impression of the background. In my current work, my figures appear very small and chubby or extremely elongated. By playing with scale, I want to provoke a sense of confusion for the viewer.

Calendar Girls

What do you love about your studio space?

My current studio in the South of Spain is surrounded by wilderness, which lets me  work in absolute silence with an abundance of light and space. It’s also easy to convert my studio into a gallery space, which comes in handy when clients want to come and see my work.

Marleen's studio in the South of Spain.

What's your favourite inspirational quote?

“The artist is nothing without the gift but the gift is nothing without the work.” -- Emile Zola

Time to leave

Browse Marleen's Works >>

Rise Art Prize 2018 finalist Maria Magenta lives for painting the human body. When Rachael Thomas, the Senior Curator and Head of Exhibitions at the Irish Museum of Modern Art, saw Maria's work up at our Rise Art Prize finalist exhibition, she was moved. "Maria Magenta’s poetic and evocative works not only exquisitely portray a human presence, but they also convey a sense of questioning of the human condition," Rachael has said. "Through delicate use of pattern and composition, these works capture a mood out of time."

Maria in front of a new work inspired by Frida Kahlo.

Maria was born in Germany and moved to Russia with her family as a child. She showed artistic flair from a young age, and by the time she hit high school Maria had her sights firmly set on the prestigious State Academic Art Institute in Moscow. Although she was discouraged from pursuing a career in art, nothing could deter the young Russian artist from following her dream. Now she’s a member of the Moscow Union of Artists and holds a gold medal from the Russian Academy of Arts.

On the patchwork quilt by Maria Magenta

Painting from life has become Maria’s raison d'être and her poetic, large-scale figuratives have made their mark in solo shows in Cannes, Moscow, Prague and Monaco. Here in London, her piece Rest (below) wowed spectators at our inaugural Rise Art Prize Finalist Exhibition earlier this year.

What did it mean to you to be a Rise Art Prize 2018 finalist?

I was really proud (and surprised!) to get the announcement that I was a Rise Art Prize finalist. It was unexpected, but I was thrilled.

Rest by Maria Magenta

When did you know you wanted to be an artist?

I won some watercolours as a child when I entered a painting competition, and when the judge complimented my work it gave me faith in myself. I decided then and there that I wanted to be an artist. Sometimes a word of praise from someone special can inspire you for the rest of your life.

Maria in front of On the patchwork quilt.

During high school I prepared for the difficult entrance exams for the Moscow State Academic Art Institute. I studied anatomy and drew skeletons, nudes and casts of greek sculptures. My parents and school teachers didn’t approve of my choice, but I decided I wasn’t going to live by other people’s expectations.

Greek era by Maria Magenta.

My dream came true when I got into art school. For 6 years I spent my days painting nudes and studying philosophy, aesthetics and art history. It was the happiest time of my life.