Natasha Wright and Nancy Elsamanoudi discuss painting, feminism, and female power in Bushwick dialogue

Natasha Wright and Nancy Elsamanoudi, two young New York painters, engaged in a public conversation on September 28 at Amos Eno Gallery in Bushwick. Their dialogue coincided with the final weekend of Elsamanoudi's exhibition and the Bushwick Open Studios festival. Both artists incorporate figurative and abstract elements in their work, with Wright noting a shift toward more emblematic representations of female experience in her recent show "Les Biches." She described her paintings as merging figuration and abstraction to create ambiguous readings, with cropped figures highlighting moments of heightened sensation. Wright's work explores ideas of sexuality and power, referencing historical depictions from the Venus of Willendorf to Picasso's Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. Elsamanoudi emphasized the importance of attitude and confidence in her large-scale paintings, where paint becomes an analogy for the body. Both artists were featured in Harper's Bazaar's fall exhibition recommendations. Drawing is essential to Elsamanoudi's process, having studied at the New York Studio School after learning from her grandmother. Wright's previous pop-up exhibition was curated by Jeffrey Morabito and Martin Dull. Artcritical published extracts of their conversation the following day.