How would you describe your work?
As a kind of "soft parody" in that many of my works place a humorous spin on iconic masterpieces. For instance, I've reimagined the figures in Michelangelo's Pietà as plump bunnies in bronze, Henry Moore's Reclining Nude as a slinky lemur and Monet's lily pond paintings as a Rorschach test. More recently I had fun with vintage DIY flower-arranging manuals, specifically looking at the rigid Japanese style of Ikebana.You work in many different mediums, which is your favourite?
I am lucky in the sense that I am comfortable with working in many mediums, and I enjoy experimenting with material limitations.
I studied fine art and majored in painting and printmaking, after which I lectured in printmaking for four years. Over the past 13 years, I have worked as a full-time artist and have produced various paintings, prints and sculptures, ranging materially from plush fur to cast bronze. I enjoy all of these materials and processes for different reasons. I have no favourites yet.
What are you currently working on?
This has been an exciting year with two solo exhibitions, in Cape Town and Johannesburg. Currently I am working on a large painting commission and a new bronze that will be ready in 2018 ... and of course a new body of work is busy percolating.
Can you describe your studio?
My studio is my sanctuary. It is an old converted mechanic's workshop not far from our home in Woodstock. I prefer sitting on the floor when I work, and most of my worktables are on wheels to make them mobile. I often move my workspace around, depending on changing light sources.What's a typical day in the studio like?
Juggling a career and motherhood makes for creative negotiations around school runs, extramural activities and foundry visits. If I'm on a deadline, I have to work over weekends. I try to get a solid four hours of work in the morning and three hours in the afternoon, punctuated by coffee breaks at our local coffee roastery around the corner.
In your experience, what's the best thing about making art?
It provides free therapy and constant problem-solving opportunities!
And the worst?
It's a tough industry. Producing art is labour-intensive and erratic. Having said that, there isn't a day that goes by where I'm not grateful to be able to produce work full-time.
Three South African artists whose work you'd love to own?
I would love to own one of Zanele Muholi's self-portraits, a Michele Mathison plaster cast titled Distension or a Simon Stone painting.• Visit sanellaggenbach.com..