Well known for her stencil and street art, Vexta is in a constant state of creative exploration. Whether it is painting her way across various far flung countries, or throughout the streets of Melbourne, her work embodies all the excitement that such exploration entails – and yet her work never seems to step across the line into banality, instead working its way into the subconscious with its vivid clash of colours and ideas.

Her recent exhibition at Melbournes Platform, Extinction in Technicolour, has allowed Vexta to cross over into the installation realm in such a natural extension of her mural work that is is hard to see the boundary between the two forms, which is a measured coup unto itself.

Intersecting both the natural, and futurist world through the use of found urban and, if somewhat slightly necrotic, remains, Extinction in Technicolour is a playful display of juxtapositions that carries a thoughtful undercurrent – and we were more than happy to ask her all about it …

What is it about doing all this work, exhibitions, street art, that gives you the biggest thrill, and drives you to produce the work you do?

I guess being an artist is like having a weird, somewhat over-riding, drive to create. Its something that I just have to do. If I don’t draw and make stuff I end up going a bit crazy – maybe it’s just the way I deal with the world, I always have.

It’s pretty satisfying figuring out how to create the ideas I have in my mind, and then in turn around to have someone experience what I’ve made – maybe totally getting where I am coming from – or even seeing something in the art that I didn’t even realize was there. I guess that’s a thrill, when someone says to me “So I see this…” and I’m completely blown away, because they have shown me something that I didn’t even see myself. In turn, I usually learn something about myself, my life, and my art. Making those kind of connections through a complete stranger is pretty rad.

Thematically, you have evolved in your work from a fairly activist viewpoint, to more of a futurist perspective, what do you believe caused this shift and how do you believe it will continue to change your work over time?

Fundamentally my earlier work was made in reaction to what was going on around me socially and politically at the time. And now my work is more about creating something that isn’t so much as a reaction to something as a creation of something new. My artwork is a little bit of everything around me – new ideas, concepts and feelings.

Can you tell us a little about your favourite techniques, at the moment, that you utilize when you’re working on pieces?

My favourite technique right now is using stencils in a painterly way – layering geometric shapes on top of each other and using crazy neon colours that clash against each other yet somehow create form.

Do you see this latest showing of work as a more experimental direction than what you usually do, or is it merely an extension of themes you have been looking at for some time?

Both. Its more experimental, its more installation based and its an extension of themes I’ve been exploring for sometime.

What is it about Platform as a venue for exhibiting that most excites you?

Platform is exciting because it’s a space that sits between an art gallery, a public space and the street. It’s really unique, there is nothing else quite like it in Melbourne. My work has always been site specific so its awesome to create a collection of art for those window boxes in particular.

Where did you find all the skulls and such in the city? Did you wake up and say to yourself “okay, this morning I’m going out and gunna find me some dead things” and just go from there?  Can you explain your theory’s on “found objects” and their place in urban artistry?

Well, I’ve been collecting skulls for a few years now, I’ve always been fascinated by skulls and for a long time I was making a lot of portrait styled paintings so it was a logical step to start being interested by what is under the skin – and because of my obsession, my friends have been giving me skulls for years, so I’d amassed quite a collection. I also went foraging out in the countryside, where I found an almost complete horse skeleton, as well and a deer skull on a huge property about an hour from the city.

For me, found objects have always had a place in my practice. The first pieces I made were paintings on stuff I found in the streets. I think many other street artists also have a connection with found objects, maybe because we are use to reacting and creating our work on things and places we find in the city.

You’ve done a fair amount of commissioned work here and there, can you tell us a little more about what else you have worked on in the past year and what projects you have coming up after the exhibition?

In the past year I have done a bit of travelling. I went to Bogotá in Colombia to paint for a festival, that was amazing – painting in the slums in the south of the city was just incredible. I also travelled to Japan, LA and San Francisco, some for art, some for fun.

Coming up I am making a lot of work for the Melbourne Art Fair, then I am curating a show with a couple of other very talented Melbourne ladies – its pretty exciting, its in a very interesting location, but I cant really give too much away about it yet!

I’m also in a group show at the National Gallery of Australia, and I’m really hoping to finish an animation before the year is out too.

For you, what are the differences in perspective between doing commissioned work, and illegal work? You have mentioned elsewhere that you do more commission work these days than illegal, mainly because of the size of work that you now like working on, but do you believe the illegal work still holds a place for your expression, and if so, why?

Its definitely hard to make the scale of the works I want to make illegally, and I feel pretty lucky that over the last couple of years that quite a few people have given me walls to paint big pieces on. That said, I still love going out and painting and pasting under the cover of darkness … Illegal work will always excite me. It’s the root of my art, and its important to me to keep having fun. It’s nice, as well, to leave little painted presents for people on the streets.

Tell us a little of the highlights in your artistic life so far, and, if there have been any low points, would you change them?

The highlights have been, definitely, all the travel. Painting in the Cans Festival in London was really amazing, and the support for street art there is just huge. Then, in contrast, painting in the slums of Bogotá was almost equally awe-inspiring. Of course, not all of my artistic life has been perfect, but I don’t think I’d change any difficult points I’ve had because they have all taught me how to be better and stronger, and to make my work what it is today.

Over the years, you’ve worked alongside some pretty interesting artists, who is currently inspiring your work and why?

Right now I’m actually really inspired by science, in particular quantum physics – that stuff just blows my mind, I’m really inspired by artists who can fuse elements of the past with ideas of the future. There’s just too many to mention! I always find the work of my friends pretty inspiring, people like Kill Pixie, Anthony Lister, Tai Snaith, Acorn, Al Stark.

So, where to next?

Back into my studio to start working on a whole new series of paintings!  I think I’m going to look to my dreams for some ideas and then get photographing, drawing and painting… and spend some time figuring out a way to squeeze some more travel into my schedule …

You can see Extinction in Technicolour at Melbournes Platform Artists Group (Itself within the underpass between Flinders Station and Degraves St) until May the 29th – you can also check out her website for a bunch of other fantastic info and images.