Julia Clift
Connected, 2024
Natural inks made from foraged walnut, goldenrod, and hibiscus, and synthetic carmine ink on paper
Custom frame: 12-1/2 x 13-3/4"
museum glass

Artist Statement
My work overall reflects on current American culture, my own mediated perception of reality, and humankind's fraught relationship with the natural world. Often appearing like collages, my oil paintings combine imagery from different American regions with invention and abstraction, envisioning new worlds and offering a sense of possibility. My smaller works on paper, like Connected, incorporate natural inks that I make from foraged plants. These pieces meditate particularly on ephemerality, on tensions between ecology and the built environment, and on the potential of hybrid, natural/human-made systems.

Artist Bio
Julia Clift is a Philadelphia-based artist using painting, drawing, and collage to grapple with current American culture, her own mediated perception of reality, and humankind's fraught relationship with the natural world. Her work has been widely exhibited throughout the United States, at locations including Massey Klein Gallery, Pentimenti Gallery, Fleisher Art Memorial, MassoniArt, Bloomfield Richwood Gallery, GreenHill Center for NC Art, Philip Slein Gallery, and Arnot Art Museum. Her pieces are held in permanent collections at Wythe Hotel in Brooklyn, NY, and Penn Medicine's Clifton Center for Medical Breakthroughs in Philadelphia. Recently, she was named a 2026 CFEVA Fellowship Finalist. A passionate educator, Julia has taught painting and drawing at The Pennsylvania State University, Tyler School of Art and Architecture, Maryland Institute College of Art, and West Chester University. At Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University, Julia co-created and continues to teach Visualizing Anatomy, a course that deepens medical students' understanding of anatomy through visual arts curriculum. In 2023, she conceived and curated Seeing the Anthropocene, a multi-venue exhibition in Philadelphia featuring works by over a dozen international artists, scientists, and musicians all grappling with urgent environmental issues. Julia received her BFA from Washington University in St. Louis and her MFA from Tyler School of Art and Architecture, Temple University. She additionally studied under the painter Odd Nerdrum from 2009-2010. Her writing has been featured in BOMB, Hyperallergic, and Title Magazine.

juliaclift.com