Desiree Holman: Burqa and Bikinis

At first glance, interdisciplinary Oakland-based artist Desirée Holman’s  burqa and bikini wearing women bear little resemblance to the pencil-drawn character wearing a Liza Minelli-esque mask that opens Holman’s website, so much so that you may wonder if they were created by the same person. Alas, the work is all Holman’s: the former sculpture student has received nationwide acclaim after getting early attention from the University of California at Berkeley’s creative Eisner Awards in both video and photography. She says she’s primarily influenced by sociology and psychology, fantasy-based cultures, online gaming, and music videos. Elements of each can be seen as her newest work, the drawing and video series “Reborn,” opens at San Francisco’s Silverman Gallery this Friday night.