Piece of the Week: ‘The Desert’ by Essi Kimpimaki

“The Desert” by Essi Kimpimaki sets a peaceful scene: a wolf hows at the moon in the Arizona landscape, surrounded by lush green cacti and gentle cloud cover. It’s a relaxing look at a beautiful moment in the wild that we might not get to see all that often.

All of Essi Kimpimaki‘s works are restful without being simple, and “The Desert” is no exception to this rule. Kimpimaki’s graphic style and playful use of shape brings a beautiful formality to the artwork. It is considered and planned in tone and line, making the details on the mauve cactus an endearing detail.

Essi’s “The Desert” is imaginatively bold and simple. I think it’s notably strong for its use of representation and symbolism over realist approaches to illustration. Its power is instilled in the wafting grey clouds and affect of brush stroke, which all work together to form a mystical relationship with the desert for the viewer.

For its beautiful design and composition, in which cactus and a lone wolf work effortlessly together, “The Desert” is our Piece of the Week.