Discipline & ANARCHY: Gabrielle Benak
Gabrielle Benak is a mixed-media artist from New York, coming from a Moroccan-American family. Primarily a watercolor painter, she never limits her works to one medium. Themes of documentation, adornment, maximalism, and preservation are just some of the roots of her work. The combination of autobiography and false reality results in elaborate imagery. Gabrielle graduated from the School of Visual Arts with her BFA in 2019. She has since maintained her art practice, placing watercolor and drawing at the center. Her time at Infinite Objects extended her practice into the realm of new media, making video and art-tech an important aspect of her world. No matter the medium, the themes of Gabrielle’s work are often biographical, leaving the viewer with both a deeper understanding of the artist as well as a moment of personal introspection.
Recently, Gabrielle’s pieces “Kangaroo” and “The Rigid & The Tender” were on view at Sue Tear Gallery in Brooklyn, New York, as part of the show “Concessions To Impurity”. Additional notable exhibitions include “Wavelengths”, SVA Chelsea Gallery, New York (Sept.-Dec. 2025), “LO QUE ES IGUAL, NO ES VENTAJA”, Galeria Tiro Al Blanco, Guadalajara, Mexico (February-April 2025), HARPER’S HOLIDAY, Harper’s Chelsea, New York (December 2024), Acid Garden, Charles Moffett Gallery, New York (January 2022), The Privilege of Getting Together Vol.II, Anna Zorina Gallery, New York (April 2021).
Gabrielle is also the co-founder of Art Interlude; a social started by Shirley Lai and herself to foster genuine connections and conversations in a welcoming environment with members of the art world. The most recent iteration was co-hosted with Bolster Arts.
WHY DO YOU DO IT? WHAT DRIVES YOU?
Instinct, a little fear, content, trying to feel good at something, wanting to prove something, wanting to say something, freedom, coping, coasting, intuition, need/compulsion, and happiness.My work is about me and how I interact with the world, but I try to leave room for people to see themselves in it, too. I would consider myself a jack of all trades in the sense that I have had many jobs and picked up many skills, and experienced many different lines of work. My decision to take art seriously, and then pursue it, came after a long time of trying to figure out what I “wanted to do with my life” while simultaneously trying to push away how fulfilling being creative is because I didn’t think I could take it seriously. I am still trying to figure it out, and have learned that picking one lane is not necessary (or, candidly, feasible), but have accepted and celebrated the decision to be an artist holistically. With that, the pursuit comes at all costs. This can be daunting but also invigorating. For example, I started to create stop-motion animations on a commission basis to generate income, and ended up falling in love with the medium, making it part of my practice. I stand behind the work I make and surprise myself with its constant evolutions.Currently, I am also teaching drawing and painting, and it has not only reinforced my practice but in many ways I feel I am learning as much as I am teaching. It is a more chaotic life in terms of consistency, stamina to keep making and keep putting yourself out there, self doubt, and, of course, money. But, ultimately, I cannot describe or beat the feeling of making something. I don’t feel that anything comes as naturally to me. I don’t feel this “flow state” or this intrinsic-ness doing anything else. So, I nurture it.WHAT IS ONE THING YOU DO FOR SANITY MAINTENANCE?
It is funny because I think my answer is similar to some of the other artists in this series: going on many walks and bike rides. It is necessary for me, and helps both clear my mind and simultaneously practice presentness. I try to walk or bike by the west side highway path once a week, even in winter, because going to see the water is important.WHAT IS THE SCRAPPIEST THING YOU’VE DONE FOr money?
Where do I start haha...I think I'll say my intricate Depop flipping stint, where I would spend as much time as I could trying to find absurdly low-priced vintage and deadstock trendy items on Ebay or local thrifts and then flip them. So tedious for little money, but so many good clothes. It made me discover the 2005-2007 Desigual collection with the coolest graphic tees and prints different from all their other stuff. Currently only one seller in Belgium has the brunt of that collection. Another one I will admit to is looking up the summer break or move-out dates for some of the universities near me to “fancy dumpster dive”. Parsons always has the best for art supplies or other things, usually fully unopened packs of things that are really expensive to buy new but were discarded because of move-out stress.YOUR TASK IS TO PRESCRIBE ONE BOOK OR FILM TO THE COLLECTIVE. WHAT IS IT?
Book: SYMPATHY FOR WILD GIRLS by Demree McGhee, of course.Film: BEST IN SHOW. If you haven't seen it, its one of the best early mockumentaries. OKAY, I’ll note there’s definitely a lack of representation in the cast and some early 2000’s TV tropes, but it's a true classic. Also a killer cast (Parker Posey, Catherine O’Hara, Jane Lynch, and so many more.Current obsession?
In my practice, creative erasure paintings with watercolor on wood panel. I basically make a painting on a wood panel with watercolor, let it seep through and dry, paint black over it, let that dry, then use water to make a painting with negative space, revealing some of the underpainting.
In life, eating red meat. I have been a pescatarian for like 10+ years, eating chicken in phases, eating red meat maybe twice a year. I turned 30 and all of a sudden I need steak like once a week. I don’t know how long it will last, but that’s now.MOST USEFUL FAILURE?
When I left my first college and decided to go to art school. Quite literally a failure in terms of grades. It was also after many years of denying that I could take art seriously, many years of struggling to keep up with school and many pursuits in other directions. Without failing this path, I wouldn’t be on the path I am on now.SELECTED Q FROM THE PROUST QUESTIONNAIRE: What is your current state of mind?
Being more open to being open. It can be hard not to be jaded.WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY WORKING ON?
My first solo presentation! I know I am supposed to be nonchalant and withholding, but I’m excited and not like that. It is my personal goal to achieve a solo presentation by 2028 and I am excited for the challenge. It will be in a bit, which gives the project time to develop. I have never worked on something for this long and I am down for the challenge. Without giving too much away, the show will be the culmination of a passion project I have been working on for over a year. It was the first long-term project I have started with multiple components and no end goal. An organized mess. It was purely bred from reading a book and feeling inspired, then doing an interview and being inspired to conduct some of my own. When the opportunity arose to have a solo show, I knew this was where this project could have its moment and give it a place to come together. I was inspired by the book SYMPATHY FOR WILD GIRLS by Demree McGhee. The book is a remarkable collection of short stories that made me want to dive deeper into the lived experience of the “wild girl”, as well as concepts around preciousness, femininity, trauma, survival, the privilege of being soft (or lack thereof), and the network that forms through the bond of necessity and shared experience.DISCIPLINE OR ANARCHY?
Both. Not as a cop out, but as someone who only lives in extremes, I need both in tandem. Many of my works are titled things like "Hold Me Accountable, Hold Me," "Misery and Ecstasy In The Same Capacity," "Self Worth/Self Worship," and so on. These highlight being a person who can hold two things at once, together.check out Gabrielle’s work
The Rigid And The Tender
Kangaroo
Felisa On A Cruise
