With a background in fine art and a thriving career as a gallerist, Carla Nizzola has reclaimed her creative power through her alter ego, Alma Singer, crafting genuine and relatable artworks that captivate with their witty slogans, naïve yet endearing stick figures, and humorous social commentary. In just a year, the thirty-six-year-old has achieved tremendous success, with her prints available at renowned auction house Bonhams and an exclusive collaboration with Jealous Gallery on the horizon. As her debut solo exhibition, ‘A for Effort,’ prepares to open at Extraordinary Objects on June 10th, Nizzola’s story resonates as a testament to resilience, female empowerment, and the true essence of art.
Who is Alma Singer? What do art lovers need to know about your work and why you’re making it?
Alma Singer is my alter ego. Sort of who I’d be if I was less shy and insecure. I make not very well painted a little bit funny drawings and paintings. I make them because it brings me a lot of joy and I hope other people feel a bit of that when they see the work.
You’re a gallery owner and an artist yet some of your slogan-based work seems to spotlight issues in the art world. What is your relationship to the art industry like? Is your alter ego a product of this?
It’s weird, but my relationship to the art world is very different depending on whether I’m interacting as a gallerist or an artist. I get mansplained to a lot as a female gallery owner which can be really frustrating. As an artist people tend to be much warmer and supportive which I guess I didn’t really expect and has been a nice surprise.
You’re fairly new to sharing your art with the world. Have you been making art for a while and how did you come to it?
I’ve always made stuff and studied fine art at university. For a few years I tried to be kind of a grand serious painter and made slightly rubbish earnest abstract paintings in a tiny freezing studio in East London. I stopped painting when I realised it wasn’t really me but made the occasional stop motion for family and friends. Being a bit older now I’ve stopped trying to emulate other artists I admire and be more accepting of my natural style – a little bit shit but kind of funny. I guess, for better or worse, the Alma Singer works feel like they’re really me.
Your slogans have a playful way of combining an accessible and endearingly naive style with important social commentary. Is your artwork a way of processing more serious issues? What do you hope to evoke in your viewer?
“I want people to smile”
Mostly I make stuff without overthinking it, just whatever is in my head that day. Its only when I stand back that I realise I’m expressing something I think or care about, even if it’s in a slightly silly way. I guess when you make things it’s almost impossible not to put yourself and your opinions in the work. I want people to smile, and maybe I have the rather lofty idea that by poking fun at things some people might stop and think about their own views and opinions a little bit.
You also poke fun at social media. What are your thoughts on Instagram, particularly in relation to artists and promoting art?
Like most people I have a love hate relationship with social media, with the emphasis slightly more on the hate side. Having said that it’s an amazing way for artists to connect with audiences without having to rely on the traditional gatekeepers. For me it’s been great, and I’ve been surprised and delighted by how people have responded to the work and that anyone cares about what I do.
Are there any particular artists or creatives that you look to for inspiration?
There are too many artists I love to mention. I’m sort of trying to be myself as thirty-something women, rather than emulate people I admire. When I was younger, I was definitely inspired by other artists and not necessarily in a good way. To be honest these days I’m more inspired by whatever music I’m listening to, that seems to kind of leak into the work in some slightly mystical way.
You already have pieces available to purchase via Bonhams and Jealous gallery, where else can fans purchase your works?
You can buy works from my exhibition at Extraordinary Objects in Cambridge, and I have a new print out in June with Jealous Gallery.
And finally, what can we look forward to seeing from Alma Singer this year?
I’m launching my website over the summer where I’ll be selling a range of merchandise, I’ve been working on this year which I’m really excited about. I also have a solo exhibition in London at Quantas Gallery and potentially a show in the US.
Alma Singer’s A For Effort is at Extraordinary Objects.
14 Green Street, Cambridge, CB2 3JU
www.extraordinaryobjects.co.uk | @almasingerart