Nessy Discusses Pop Art Evolution, Mental Health, and New Hoodie Boy Series

In a Singulart Magazine interview published on September 18, 2026, the artist Nessy detailed how moving from Singapore to Sydney's Rocks district reshaped her creative approach. She said her style in Singapore was completely different and she knew nothing about pop art, which felt like a Western language; discovering it in Sydney, where bold color use opened her eyes, inspired her to explore the style. Nessy described a recent piece in which a lighthearted palette contrasted with a grounded emotional core, showing how humor and resilience coexist. With a graphic-arts and advertising background, she balances structure and clean lines with vulnerability introduced through color shifts, texture, and expressive marks. Her process moved from pencil, ink, and watercolor to digital art, where mistakes could be undone, before she returned to traditional media last year and embraced errors as discovery. She now mixes acrylics, acrylic markers, and texture, and her latest work, Hoodie Boy, reflects her mental-health journey, using dark themes and vivid color and drawing inspiration from Banksy, Basquiat, Warhol, and Haring. Nessy said mental health is real and never something to hide, and that Hoodie Boy reflects her struggles and coping methods; she hopes the work helps others feel less alone. The interview also highlights three works: Hoodie Boy – Lovely Day, AUS POP – Vegemite, and Hoodie Boy – Dali Who?.