SAATCHI ART’S
RISING STARS
As the world’s leading online gallery, Saatchi Art is dedicated to representing emerging artists from around the globe. While some of these artists have been making art for years, many others are just beginning their careers—and will be shaping the future of contemporary art for years to come.
“Saatchi Art’s Rising Stars” focuses on these young talents. For this annual list, Saatchi Art curators Monty Preston and Aurora Garrison, led by chief curator Rebecca Wilson, introduce recent graduates from the best art schools in the US and UK, offering collectors the chance to be among the first to discover exceptionally talented emerging artists.
As the world’s leading online gallery, Saatchi Art is dedicated to representing emerging artists from around the globe. While some of these artists have been making art for years, many others are just beginning their careers—and will be shaping the future of contemporary art for years to come.
“Saatchi Art’s Rising Stars” focuses on these young talents. For this annual list…
Hannah Benassi
Edinburgh, Scotland
Duncan of Jordanstone
College of Art and Design
BFA 1st Class (Honors)
Hannah Benassi
Edinburgh, Scotland
Duncan of Jordanstone
College of Art and Design
BFA 1st Class (Honors)
HANNAH BENASSI
Edinburgh, Scotland
Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design
BFA
Hannah Benassi’s paintings are comprised of simplified textural forms derived from an interest in antiquity, her Italian heritage, and how organic forms interact with man-made environments. The Edinburgh-based artist received her BA at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design and she will start her MFA at the Glasgow School of Art in autumn 2019. She has participated in a number of exhibitions in Scotland including at Generator Gallery, The Biscuit Factory, and Doc Street Studio, and is the recipient of the 2019 Farquhar Reid Trust Prize.
Untitled
$2,741
Untitled
$1,038
Untitled
$1,705
“Informed by intuitive photographic research of ancient ruins and rustic architecture, Hannah deconstructs her visual references to their most simplified forms, piecing them together through a layering process that results in organic color fields.”
– Monty Preston, Associate Curator
Magdalena Gluszak-Holeksa
London, United Kingdom
University of the Arts London
Wimbledon College of Arts
MFA
Lee Simmonds
Berkshire, UK
University of Oxford
BFA First Class (Hons)
With a BFA (Hons) First Class from Oxford University, Berkshire-born artist Lee Simmonds finds inspiration in the mundanity of suburban life. The 1st prize winner of the MS Amlin Young Artist Award, and of the Christ Church JCR A4 Prize, Lee has exhibited his work at the National Portrait Gallery and BP Portrait Award in London, and at the Scottish Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh.
The Unenvied Burden 2
$3,390
Untitled (Hands)
$596
Untitled (Books)
$2,125
“Lee’s painterly practice is approached with an abstract mentality, appearing and disappearing props and characters through a ruminative investigation of chronic boredom.”
– Monty Preston, Associate Curator
Magdalena Gluszak-Holeksa
London, United Kingdom
University of the Arts London
Wimbledon College of Arts
MFA
Brandon Logan
Orkney, Scotland
Edinburgh College of Art
MFA (Honors)
Graduating with an MA in Painting from the Edinburgh College of Arts, Brandon Logan brings an inventive multi-media approach to painting, creating woven tapestries by sealing strings with lacquered paint. In 2019, Brandon won The Astaire Art Prize, Royal Scottish Academy New Contemporaries Prize, and The University of Edinburgh Purchase Prize.
Tender Tables
$6,450
“Based in the Scottish islands of Orkney, Brandon weaves together his traditional heritage and contemporary method of painting to create works that embody the rich and stimulating space between object and artwork, craft and fine art.”
– Monty Preston, Associate Curator
Molly brocklehurst
London, England
University of Arts London
MFA with Merit
Through paint, British artist Molly Brocklehurst reconstructs old photographs to create scenes which blur the lines between document and fiction. Molly received her BFA (Hons) from Leeds Art University and her MFA with Merit from the University of Arts London. Her works have been exhibited in London at Truman’s Brewery, the Affordable Art Fair, Midnight Gallery, and the Refresh Art Award show.
Brenda
$2,900
Red Handed
$3,300
The Procession
$3,850
“Molly’s works speak to a haunting past, addressing the passing of time, loss, and notions of communities that no longer exist.”
– Monty Preston, Associate Curator
Rosalind Sanderson
Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh College of Art
MFA
Through painting and printmaking, Scottish artist Rosalind Sanderson intuitively explores the natural elements of the world, particularly the organic rhythm of waves and wind. She received her MFA from the Edinburgh College of Art and has been shortlisted for the Astaire Art Prize, ECA Degree Show 2019.
Maïa Régis
London, UK
Royal College of Art
MFA in Painting
Maïa Régis’ paintings directly respond to the emotional and physical binaries of life. Originally from Paris, she moved to London where she completed her BFA at the Chelsea College of Art and her MFA at the Royal College of Art. Maïa’s work has appeared in publications such as Art Maze Mag and Florr Magazine and is the recipient of the Bloomberg New Contemporaries Prize in both 2017 and 2018, as well as the Griffin Art Prize 2017.
Fly and Vinegar
$5,350
Run Devil Run
$5,350
Ramon Reyna
$5,350
“Maïa’s collage-like works seek to find a balance in paradoxical contexts with a sense of humor and joy while leaving space for ambiguity.”
– Monty Preston, Associate Curator
Gary anderson
Scottish Borders
Edinburgh College of Art
BA in Painting (Honors)
Rather than begin a work with a final composition already in mind, Edinburgh-based artist Gary Anderson uses a free-flowing process propelled by emotions, unconscious thoughts, and visual cues. Using his mood to dictate his materials, he works across a range of mediums—from sculpture and photography to painting and drawing. Having just completed his BA (Hons) in Painting at the Edinburgh College of Art, Gary will embark on his MFA there this fall. His work has been shown in numerous exhibitions in the UK, and he was the Edinburgh College of Art Astaire Prize runner up in March 2019 as well as the recipient of the Lyon and Turnbull Award in June 2019.
Scott’s Gaff
$1,130
Small Outing
$380
Ardnamurchan
$380
“Gary’s intuitive art-making practice results in emotive works that are at once universally profound and highly personal.”
– Rebecca Wilson, Chief Curator
Riin Kaljurand
Dublin, Ireland
National College of Art and Design
MFA in Painting
Riin Kaljurand’s work explores the limits of her materials, resulting in highly textural, skin-like works made of household paint and acrylic that reference contemporary society and how age is perceived. The Estonia-born artist is a graduate of both the BFA and MFA program at National College of Art and Design in Ireland. She has exhibited her work extensively in Europe and the US. This year she has been featured in three exhibitions in Dublin and is longlisted for the 2019 RDS Artist Award.
Portrait
$660
Non-Painting 2
$1,785
Woman with Coat
$680
“Derived from an interest in the tangible aspect of her materials, Riin’s sculptures abstractly underline the perception of her place in contemporary society and her Soviet heritage.”
– Monty Preston, Associate Curator
DISCOVER PAST CLASSES
RISING STARS ALUMNI
Since the 2013 publication of our very first MFA graduate feature—formerly titled “Invest in Art”—many of the featured artists have gone on to achieve significant acclaim. Discover these talented artists by revisiting past editions of the guide.
EDITION XII
EDITION XI
EDITION X: US
EDITION X: UK
THIS YEAR’S SELECTION COMMITTEE
MEET OUR CURATORS
Rebecca Wilson
Chief Curator & VP Art Advisory, Saatchi Art
Monty Preston
Associate Curator
Monty Preston is an Associate Curator at Saatchi Art. She graduated summa cum laude with a B.A.Sc in Linguistics and Spanish Language Studies from the University of Toronto, Canada. Monty has previously worked at such industry disrupting startups as The RealReal in San Francisco, and BeautyPie in London.
Aurora Garrison
Assistant Curator
Aurora Garrison is an Assistant Curator at Saatchi Art. She has a B.A. in Art History and International Affairs from Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon and an M.A. in Cultural Heritage Studies from the University of Turin, Italy. Aurora has previously worked at Christie’s in San Francisco and Paddle8 in Los Angeles.
ON THE BLOG
CURATOR FAVORITES
Our curators highlight artists from the 2019 Class of Rising Stars whose works show strong potential to increase in value.