Visual Artist for Vol. 120: Through The Keyhole
Dorothy Siemens
Portland, OR
Dorothy Siemens is an illustrator, print-maker, and muralist based in Portland, OR. Her work for this volume spans four gatefold panels, with front and back cover rendered in stark black and white with bright orange accents, and a veritable explosion of dayglo colors on the interior. The composition features an array of heavily abstracted figures typical of the artist—the natural world is represented by creeping plants and vines, soaring birds in flight and swans floating on a placid surface. The horizon line is merely suggested as sky and sea merge across a landscape that suggests both depth and a cartoonish flatness. Across this terrain the artist places a series of faceless femme-coded figures with long hair and exaggerated features that not only observe, but actually reach out across the geometrically divided space, crossing its boundaries and even floating above the scenery. Siemens distinctive style is evident not only in her work as an illustrator and in her screen printing, but also in her various collaborations; her work is in demand by publications like Mother Jones and appears on show posters for bands including Japanese Psych-Rock legends Kikagaku Moyo.