DREAMLIKE IMAGERY
Cute cartoons turn morbid when artist Anhia Zahira Santana creates her work. With a wild imagination and passion for nostalgic childhood tv shows, Santana is able to take already existing characters and change them into her own twisted ideas. Given that her artwork is heavily based on distortion and grotesque imagery, she chose the perfect name for her brand – Distortedd.
Santana’s artwork adopts the characteristics of surrealism with its dreamlike imagery combined with reality. Each drawing and animation plays with the audience by presenting lively colors and light hearted characters with disturbing twists. She makes use of bright colors throughout her work in drawing as well as animation. She makes every image stand out with her own signature elements such as gore, dripping effects, as well as abnormal amounts of eyes and severed body parts. These elements are put in contrast with innocent subject matter, including Powerpuff Girls, Rugrats, or even celebrities. Without a doubt, Santana knows how to shock her audience.
While all of Santana’s drawings look as though they are about to come alive, she takes them one step further and actually animates some of them. She makes videos, creating stories about her own drawings. Each video includes the same elements as her drawings – innocent subject matter alongside unsettling images such as gore and distorted figures. Santana’s interest in cartoons is apparent in her animation, each one of her characters appearing in a style that matches many of the cartoons played on TV.
Santana’s art creates an unsettling feeling, but also provides a captivating experience. She not only creates drawings and animations, she also prints her designs onto objects such as phone chargers and t-shirts. With her bold style and diverse use of artistic mediums, Santana allows her artwork to continue to develop and shock her audience with its grotesque, but brilliant images.
[+] ANHIA ZAHIRA SANTANA
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