Dressed in a knee-length, rainbow sequined coat, pink glittered sunglasses, and an over-sized marbled pendant necklace, pop artist Ashley Longshore was as vibrant as her work as she debuted an exclusive collection for For Home Forty Five Ten last Friday. The New Orleans-based artist’s sought after work features a powerful feminist message, subjects ranging from Anna Wintour to Lil Wayne, and boasts a slew of of celebrity fans such as Blake Lively and Penelope Cruz.
We caught up with the artist during her visit to For Home Forty Five Ten to talk pop culture, her collaboration with the Dallas-based store, and of course, Blake’s favorite things.
What makes you so interested in painting bold pop-culture pieces?
We are pop-culture. Pop is ‘I love Frida Kahlo.’ Pop is a Gucci pattern. Pop is Whataburger. Pop is everything that’s all around us. It is my job as an artist to take my thoughts and what I want to say and put them out here where you can see them. I love consumerism, and the idea of luxury goods. I love the idea that in America, whether it is right or wrong, we are all about our house or our car. We are very brand conscious in this country.
Why did you choose Forty Five Ten to sell some of your products, since you have only previously sold through Instagram and your website?
I’m very protective of my brand. When I think of Forty Five Ten, I think of this very well-curated, special place that has incredible employees that really maintain an intimacy between the product and the brand. Selling a thought and someone giving me money for something that was in my mind is a very intimate situation. I mean, it really is all about love. When Brian Bolke approached me, I felt so passionate about his enthusiasm for my work and for what I was creating. We really felt like having color, and sparkle, and fun in the world right now was really necessary.
I’ve also been buying things from Forty Five Ten for a while. I felt confident leaving my children with them because I knew that they could represent me really well. And Dallas is such an incredible city and I’ve got so many collectors here. I knew it would be a good marriage.
Which of your pieces does Blake Lively have?
She has Frida, She has Audrey, she has chairs, she has presidents. She such an incredible woman, and we paint together all the time too.
What about pop culture has been influencing or inspiring you lately?
I think the fact that I am a woman in such a great country, regardless of the politics or the fear that the media instills in me. I have the liberty and freedom to create all of these images and make the world that I want to live in. If I focus on that positivity and I focus on being an entrepreneur, continuing to create new thoughts and new paintings, then I’m really the luckiest woman in the world. I’m just trying to stay in that positive zone and to keep bringing color into the world — we need it.
