Vanessa inside her studio. Photo: Supplied.
Warilla artist Vanessa Erbas has found “beauty in what others find morbid” by turning traditional decor on its head with her playful yet macabre handmade skull sculptures.
Now, she’s opening the doors of her home studio Veja Du to allow others into her creative sanctuary brimming with conversation-starting skull art pieces that feature anything from resin lollies to roses.
Vanessa admits she’s not your typical gothic artist as a 45-year-old Muslim mother who works in a mining office wearing PPE all day.
“I actually wear a [head] scarf, and I’m a cookie cutter, straight-laced person,” she said.
“I totally don’t fit the genre, as in I’m not gothic or into heavy metal. But I did grow up in the 80s and 90s, so I did grow up with alternate music.
“I don’t fit the genre, but I don’t think I ever have – I think I was always meant to make my own path.”
Vanessa explored art as a hobby when her children were born, transitioning from kids’ paintings through to abstract art and having her work featured in galleries and at fairs and markets, with each attempt not quite resonating with her.
However, it was during COVID when she realised the mass produced nature of decor meant unique tastes were rarely catered for.
She bought silicon moulds, creating cute plaster designs like turtles through to the more gothic-style skulls.
It was stumbling across a large skull at the now closed King of the Pack store in Port Kembla, with the owner encouraging her to take it home and paint it, that inspired her to start skull sculptures.
“I wanted to look for something that was signature to me that no one else had done,” she said.
“I went to a pop-up store someone invited me to, and it went berserk.
“We had what was called cute verse creepy.”
However, she said with discount stores selling cute designs for less than she could make them, it wasn’t until her son pointed out that her passion shone through the “creepy stuff” that she realised where her focus needed to be.
“It’s not a deja vu moment, it’s a veja du moment, because we’re starting the same thing again but different,” she said of its meaning.
That inspired the business name Veja Du and her approach to art, which she described as “making beautiful things creepy and creepy things beautiful”.
Some of the skull creations. Photo: Supplied.
“All the skulls I see are satanic with pentagrams, but why can’t they be pink and have bling and roses?” she said.
“That’s how I started doing macabre decor, but with a difference.
“When I looked back at how I started doing ink, drawing, digital art or painting, everything always had a skull in it.”
At markets, she received an overwhelming response to her skulls from those looking for one-of-a-kind art that explored the “darkest corners of existence”.
“People said, ‘Finally someone’s catering for a genre that no one’s catered for before,’” she said.
Vanessa said no two designs were alike, with the skulls often used as planters, pen holders or makeup brush storage.
She said the intricate, colourful mixed media skull sculptures were far from the typical dark, gothic imagery and instead featured unexpected elements such as pink bows, flowers, resin lollies, and whimsical decorations.
Nearing Halloween, she also does pumpkin candle holders.
“I want it to be a talking point, so if they put that piece of art in their room someone will say ‘Where did you get that from?’” she said.
She also uses her art as a therapeutic outlet for herself.
“I have anxiety and depression, so I find the only thing that relaxes me is when I go into the art room,” she said.
With Vanessa struggling to always get to markets, she now plans to open her gothic-themed studio lined with coffins and skulls on weekends, inviting others to explore her collection.
She is also looking to run art classes targeting individuals with similar mental health experiences.
Veja Du will be at Shell Con Mania at Shellharbour City Stadium on 16 August, and Newcastle Alternative Market On Tour at West Illawarra, Unanderra on 27 July. Veja Du studio at 16 Brookefield Ave, Warilla is open this Saturday and Sunday (19-20 July) from 10 am to 2 pm or watch Instagram for future studio open days.
