Mila Moldenhawer is a visual artist born in Berkeley whose work is driven by a bold use of flamboyant colors, uncanny figures, fragmented shapes and stylized illustrations. Mila’s work spans the range of artistic courage as a painter creating joyful, bold, abstract, surreal, anthropomorphic and illustrative artworks. 

“I use acrylic and aerosol to create my own characters and worlds. Using fragmented shapes, hard edges and soft blends to achieve high saturation multi-colored work, I either create portraits of unique characters and objects or purely abstract landscapes.”

After studying Art Practice and Sociology at UC Berkeley and graduating with Honors and a distinction in painting, he has gone on to work with a variety of clients and establishments in the Bay Area. 

“I was born in Berkeley and raised in Berkeley, Oakland and SF. All three of these cities were major contributors in showing me the variety of artwork and personalities available in this world. Each has an extremely unique culture.” Mila says going to Berkeley-High School had made him aware of the variety of art forms that could be explored: Oakland showed him street art that he grew to admire while SF showed him the world-class Museums with art in its more conceptual forms.”

Mila’s morning routine involves a cup of matcha and doing at least one sketch in his notebook. The process almost always starts with achieving a unique sketch that he is happy with, and then finding the right combination of paints and techniques to complete the picture. Sometimes Mila chooses colors as he goes, or sometimes they are pre-determined. 

He hopes to inspire other young artists to create their own worlds, filled with their unique perspectives. 

Check out more of Mila’s work on his instagram and "Soft Shock"- a three person show- featuring Mila at Mothbelly Gallery, with Jun Yang and Göksu. It was up till the end of June. 

As part of Guest Jes Distad’s Pride Spotlight they have shined a spotlight on LGBTQ+ artists from the Bay Area in our #WeTheArtist series.

Feature Published: June 23, 2023
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