Tafy LaPlanche: The Spirit of the Subject
Tafy LaPlanche believes in portraiture as a vehicle for storytelling. Through her bright, bold, and patterned portraits, Tafy reveals the underlying narratives of those she has encountered throughout her life. With each color, brushstroke, and design revealing aspects of ones personality, Tafy sets out to capture the true spirit of each subject.
Tell me about your background and where your creative journey began.
At the age of thirteen I was diagnosed with type one diabetes. I was considered to be one of the older patients and did not have priority over the Nintendo 64. I was given paper and pen instead. My days at the hospital were filled with drawing people as they passed by my room. This prompted my mother to put me in an art school. However, I was placed in a school where they only spoke Mandarin! There I learned to draw portraits and paint landscapes. Despite the language barrier I realized how art in itself was a universal language.
As someone of Haitian decent, there was an interest in my art skills and possibly becoming a Haitian painter. The pressure to be someone slowly made me dislike painting landscapes despite my skills in it. During pre-college I went abroad to Tuscany for a change of scenery. It was there when I had my canvas and paints out, overlooking a stunning landscape, when the sound of buzzing surrounded me. Moments later I realized I got stung by a bee because I couldn’t see out of one eye. I WAS ALLERGIC! My eyelid had blown up.
An old Italian woman came to the hill where I was, and offered me to come to her home to remedy the bee sting by placing an onion over my eye. Naive and hopeful I followed. As I watched the woman interact with her family and go about her daily tasks, I realized there and then my passion for telling people’s stories through portraiture. From creating portraits I could communicate an entire story about someone without having to say a word. And to connect despite where we may come from.
Where do you find inspiration for your work?
People and their perspective of self is what really drives me to create portraits. A lot of how I approach my work is a direct connection with the energy and personality of the person I’m portraying in a painting/drawing. There will be times I stop creating a certain portrait because I haven’t talked to the subject in some time. And it just feels wrong to create a portrait of them based on where they were when we last spoke. As people evolve, the portrait of them evolves with them if it’s being worked on.
For personal works I pull a lot from my cultural background of being Puerto Rican and Haitian- but growing up in New York. One constant you’ll see in my work is graphic patterns. I saw that a lot in street art where I was raised but also in masks from where my Grandma grew up. It’s a way of putting a bit of myself in my works.
How has your work shifted and evolved over time?
It’s certainty gone from technical and detailed to more expressive and bold. The more I create the more I become confident in trying new things and seeing how things will go! You hear “trust in the process” often amongst artists, and that’s really what I would say about the evolution of my work.
What does a typical day in the studio look like for you, and how has your art practice grown or changed?
I am one of those crazy early birds. I usually wake up around 5am and head to my studio in the morning. Play some good tunes.
If I’m using acrylic for a painting I’ll lay down a bright color to cover the canvas, or if I’m using oil a neutral tone. I create a contour line drawing of the portrait I’m going to paint. Map out the highlights, mid-tones, and shadows. Once I have my values set down then I just let the energy of the person I’m painting determine the color choices/pattern work.
I used to draw mock ups of what my paintings would be with alcohol based markers. Lately I’ve been doing them digitally to explore my options there and broaden my range in a sense.
Which experiences have impacted your work as an artist?
Stories from different walks of life. I travel a lot for work and have always been fascinated in points of views. How many can have a common goal but think differently. It’s what drives my work really. How we are different based on where we come from yet are united based on our humanity.
How has Instagram impacted your art career?
It has expanded my reach in ways I would never have imagined. Instagram has given me another way of connecting with those who are interested in my works and keeping them updated. I’ve been able to submit to more open calls around the world and just make more connections. Instagram has been a very positive impact.
What are your future goals and aspirations?
I’ve done a lot of worked based on others stories. With my new work I really want to focus on some of my own experiences. Create something a bit more personal. One of my future goals is to paint an outside mural. I believe my work will look amazing at a larger scale! Plus I’ve always believed in the accessibility of art. A mural would provide visibility to a larger audience.
Website: lepouf-art.com
Instagram: @lepouf_art