Milwaukee artist Saige Lenzmeier’s disturbingly sweet piece is available at the Milwaukee Artist Resource Network Gallery
Milwaukee artist Saige Lenzmeier, 19, overlooked the view from her eighth-floor Lower East Side apartment while crafting her vision into reality. Surrounded by vibrant furniture, checkered floors and recently completed work, her excitement to keep creating led her through the organized chaos.
Growing up in Chisago City, Minnesota, Lenzmeier drew and painted any funky idea that came into her brain but in a way that would shock her parents. As she got older, her sculpting became influenced by many artists she found on Instagram. Fascinated by realism, she put her own twist on styles she continuously saw.
During the quarantine of 2020, she began to spend her time sculpting and selling her art. Being drawn to the human body, she aims for an alternative look by creating something disturbing but adding in a sweet element, a theme in her work. Her work is visually and physically stimulating.
To put a name to the faces seen throughout her vast, erotic portfolio, Lenzmeier branded her work as Ass Faces.
“At first, the name of my brand was going to be Wizard Butts, but that didn’t have the right ring to it,” said Lenzmeier. “I make faces and I like butts so Ass… Faces.”
Lenzmeier creates pieces as small as an ornament and as big as a tiered cake. Due to the extensive size range, her labor time varies as well.
“I have a larger piece, that’s hanging in a gallery, that took me close to 14 hours. It’s pretty complex,” said Lenzmeier. “I have to wait for parts to dry, bake and pick up where I left off. But if it’s something smaller, I can get it done within a day.”
That piece is featured in the Milwaukee Artist Resource Network. Getting her work there was not as easy as she had imagined.
“I went in there with my little portfolio of work I’ve done,” said Lenzmeier. “I asked them a couple of questions, and I was expecting them to be super interested in me and ask if they could see my portfolio but they didn’t. I didn’t hear from them, so I went online and applied for everything they had coming up. One day they emailed me that I had been accepted into their new exhibition.”
Her work is on sale through the gallery and on her Depop, @sweet_sexy_saige. She continues to progress through her art and set goals for her future.
“I would like to have a gallery for people to bring in their art and create it on the spot,” said Lenzmeier. “Visitors can watch and get inspired. I want people to be able to come take classes and learn from artists. Art should be accessible to everyone.”