gals of montreal : part four, amber albrecht

i recently had the lucky opportunity to attend amber's solo show in toronto (my favorite city), & this was my second meeting with the artist, the first being in  montreal (my other favorite city! of course.) we'll be meeting up again for puces pop's winter edition in montreal & i'm happy for it, from what i can tell amber is just as quiet as i am, but i love the quiet ones, especially artistic, intense,& really interesting gals that even invite me to stay in their homes for our visit, can't beat that. see you soon amber, lets drink lots of wine & find time to chat. (i have to admit, i tend to let my ol man do most of the talking in social situations, especially when it comes to art speak.)

lets start with the basics, your name, age, & what do you do? 
My name is Amber Albrecht and I’m 29. I’m a visual artist who creates primarily 2D work on paper: drawings and drawing-based serigraphs. I do a little illustration/commision work on the side. 

so you live in montreal, for how long, & what lead up to living in montreal? do you consider montreal your home? 
I’ve lived in Montreal for about ten years now, somewhat longer than I thought I would. I came here to go to art school, and I wanted to go to a University (somewhere new) so that I could take Arts and Science classes in addition to the visual art classes. Montreal was obviously the place to go, so different from Vancouver, so quaint and so cozy. 

I definitely consider Montreal my home and I love it, but I wouldn’t mind spending some quality time in another location. Up until now there’s been no real incentive to leave. I would definitely consider a wilderness or rural dwelling, a hotter climate, or a more ancient city. I’m attracted increasingly to my native west coast but can’t imagine going back there yet (too expensive, to start). 

what are your inspirations at this moment? what are past inspirations that really affected what you do?
Lately I’ve been inspired more than usual by the native art and mythology of the North Pacific Coast, Eastern European fok art stichery, sea creatures, and of course fall spookiness. 

Generally speaking, I’m always inspired by old photographs, flora and fauna (mostly flora), non-western art, folk art, art brut, microcosms (‘art forms in nature’), textiles, dated architecture, and of course magical realism (film and literature). 

What mood are you in today? 
Today I am tired having just come home from one of my strange day jobs, after a late night finishing the drawing I made for my mom for her 60th. I’m going to have a three hour long bath and finish my book. 




Where is your favorite place to be? What is your favorite thing to do? 
My favorite place to be is always somewhere I’ve never been before, or somewhere as remote or with as many different kinds of plants or animals as possible, preferably by the sea. Or timeworn man-made places. Or a combination of the two, like the oldest botanical gardens. My favorite thing to do is to seek out such places, far from home.

all the previous gals of montreal: samantha purdy,  isabelle hayes, katie dutton!
i have even more gals of Montreal whose blogs have become known to me since the first puces pop, & whom i hope to maybe meet & so lets hope for more  of this inspiration!