All good things must .. begin? Well, here we are – after seven days, we’re at the final interview in our Fibre Femmes feature. One or two hiccups along the way, but we hit our targets. This has been a really fun feature for us, and we’ve loved every artist we’ve spoken to. I’d just like to thank all of them for their time, and to thank Lisa and Leah for some great ass articles! Of course, thanks also due to Surface POP for letting us run with the idea to cover their great idea for an opening show …

Our last, but certainly not in any way least, artist we’re featuring is Precious Little. With her illustrative narratives, each one of ‘Littles works seems to tell a story. With an often, slightly tempered, libidinous nature, its hard not to turn your head for a better look when one of her works pops into the corner of your eye.

So, without further ado, and because her words and images tell a better story than these humble fingertips, here’s Precious Little …

What was the first thing you put up in the street, and why did you decide you wanted to get something up on to a wall?

It began with tentative experiments on the side of my tool shed at home before I took it to the street. Those first experiments are still there, they’re mostly images of unicorns vomiting glitter.

Charming.

We’ve seen a bunch of your illustrative work, many of your characters feature a girl with a gas mask, such as the one above  – what’s the symbology behind this particular imagery? Is it an anonymity thing?

In all honesty, I think the initial reason was probably superficial—I’ve had such love affair with gas masks and have something of collection. Gas masks have an ominous kind of aesthetic I find delicious, and they’ve become something of a symbol for bleak dystopias, a theme that is very close to my heart. The more I worked with imagery of female nudes in gas masks, the more the acute juxtaposition of naked intimacy and faceless anonymity became a metaphor for street art and street artists.

Tell us about your interaction with other Melbourne street artists, do you have a lot, and do you have any other artists in the area that you particularly love and follow.

I’ve had the privilege of going on a few night pastes with some ridiculously talented street artists, and I hope to go on many more. It’s awesome being able to bounce of other artists’ energy and creativity. Funnily enough, the artists in the upcoming show are among those I’ve harboured a particular fondness for, and I’m thrilled about finally getting to meet them and being able to put faces on my street art loves. Kaff-eine is among my favourites for sure, that grrrl is so prolific! I can’t go down a backstreet in Fitzroy or Collingwood without her characters greeting me like old friends.

Another is Georg – I adore those Egon Schiele-esque faces and that organic sense of line.

When you’re composing a piece, what do you do differently in terms of a piece of art for a wall, and a piece for a gallery setting?

This is an interesting question because the distinction between gallery and street does inform my processes quite significantly. I’m an art school drop out who is completely enamoured and a lot more competent with traditional mediums—particularly inks, water colours and compressed charcoal—that either just don’t translate to the street or don’t survive the pasting process. As a result I feel that my gallery work (the gas mask girls are a good example) is more nuanced and exploratory because I’m not hindered by the limitations and durability of my materials. That said, the street stuff is infinitely more fun. 

Do you plan your street work or is it a spontaneous thing, and up to the moment of where you’re at at the time?

Sometimes I’ll pass a lush location in the day, then scribble and scheme for a midnight recon mission. Other times, especially with commissioned work, I have a clear idea of the space and how I’d like to use it.

It’s mostly spontaneous though.

Obviously gender and sexuality issues are important motifs in your work, and some of your most striking work out on the streets covers and embraces gay imagery – have you had much feedback on the perception of these works from either the public or other street artists?

My favourite artistic subjects are my friends and partners, and so ‘queerness’ in my work is not a theme or a deliberate political statement so much as it is simply an expression of my reality.

The response to these kinds of images at my last exhibition was overwhelmingly positive; that said, the exhibition attendees were predominately friends and partners – go figure.

As a female street artist, have you encountered any difficulties in what many still perceive to be a male dominated area? Or have you found that not to be the case?

I haven’t encountered any difficulties so far, but I think that’s unsurprising given the largely anonymous nature of street art and the fact that my partners in crime and wicked street art crew, The Darktown Strutters, is comprised wholly of fierce and talented grrrls.

Stencils or paste-ups? Which do you believe is most relevant to you when doing street work, and if you had to choose one, which would it be?

Definitely paste-ups. I love stencil work but I lack the patience for it – drawing as a process is much more satisfying for me.

What are you most looking forward to in the upcoming show at Surface POP, and what will you be bringing to the table  for the show?

I am almost delirious with the excitement of getting to meet and work with such fierce street artists, some of whom I’ve admired since I started out. Artistically and aesthetically, we’re a completely diverse bunch of artists, working across a broad scope of styles and mediums, and I think that diversity will be visually quite compelling. I’ll be showcasing some familiar paste-ups, as well as some new ones, lots of lush text-based offerings and a lot of work in more traditional mediums.

In the future, what would you most like to branch out into with your art, or are you happy with the path you are currently on? Tell us a bit about your plans to further your art …

It’s been a hectic couple of months preparing for shows, so what I’m really looking forward to is more time on the street with my crew and getting settled into a new studio so I have the creative space to work.

I’ve also got some exciting projects coming up involving some international street artists, as well as some awesome commissioned street art undertakings a bit closer to home, a variety of venues around Melbourne …

Check out more from Precious Little at her blog. Also Check out the Facebook event and the Surface POP site for more info – see you at the show!