Couples Doing Things – Bianca Nemelc & Victor Roman
Bianca and Victor have a very autonomous working relationship given that they are both respectable artists in their own individual right. Bianca Nemelcs’ artist studio in South Bronx is filled with large scale canvases of Bianca’s signature artwork of female forms that are natural in environment, rich in color and female identity. Bianca greets us in her space as she attentively moves a paintbrush across her work in progress canvas.
Both are remarkable New York-born artists with similar focuses on exploring cultural and social identity, but in many ways are different in terms of their perspective, upbringing and artistic journeys. Bianca is from Washington Heights, a self-taught fine artist that is currently preparing for her solo show at Cheryl Hazan Gallery in Tribeca in May. Victor grew up in the Lower East Side, attended Parsons School of Design and has been on a continuous exploration of design and multimedia on both canvas and digital platforms. After a few years of group shows, and solo shows around the city, Victor has recently been creating art show identities for other artists and has recently started a design agency called Anywhere Works, a multidisciplinary design studio located roughly a 15-minute walk from Bianca’s studio. We catch up with them while exploring each of their new studios, talking about their creative evolution and how sharing a creative workspace for seven years has affected and grown them in both their artistic careers as well as their relationship.
- Tell us a little about how you both met?
B+V: We met almost 7 years ago. We have a mutual friend who is a photographer and was scheduled to shoot with me. A few days earlier I had seen Vic from afar at this friend’s birthday party, so I used the opportunity to suggest he bring Vic with him to the shoot. Naturally, I charmed him and let’s just say Vic came over and never left. We moved in together 3 months later and the rest is history.
- What do you typically like to do for Valentine’s day?
B+V: We’re pretty chill! Our typical valentine’s day is splurging on some really good ingredients, cooking a delicious meal (usually pasta) and laying on the couch watching a movie or playing some records. Honestly, we don’t mind doing anything at all as long as we’re enjoying each other’s company.
- Do you do gifts or no gifts?
B+V: No gifts. Maybe one of us will pop into our favorite chocolate shop on Mott street on our way home and get some sweets. Peak bonding moment for us is making coffee, taking turns trying each of the chocolates in the box and saying “oooh yea, you should try this one.” haha.
- You both work in the creative field, does being in a relationship with another creative help with keeping your creative energy levels up?
B+V: I think it definitely keeps the creative energy in motion. Our inspirations are always changing so there is always something new to talk about or ideas to bounce off of each other. It’s great to have someone who is both your supporter and critic all in one. We’re very opposite in our personalities and what fuels us, so if one of us is in a slump, the other has found some inspiration and vice versa. It’s nice because there is never a moment of downtime as a unit. One of us is always grinding and pushing the team forward in some way.
- How do you keep work/home separate? Do you try to set boundaries to keep an even balance between both?
B+V: I think we are constantly re-learning what balance is. Preserving individuality within our partnership is important to us so having separate studio spaces away from home is helpful for sure. It’s nice to surprise one another with some new work we haven’t seen, or just lock ourselves in a room and figure out our process in solitude. Being creative can be very personal, so we respect that for each other. It’s also nice that our studios are close to each other which holds us both accountable. We can say, hey let’s grab a coffee and go to work or nah, today is for us, let’s go out and explore (or stay home and do nothing). It makes creating very purposeful and it makes spending time together equally as intentional.
Bianca is wearing the Darcy Indigo Placed Crewneck & Modern Chino (coming soon)
- If you are not working or working on a project, what do you typically like to do together for downtime?
B+V: We’re usually out enjoying the day, tomorrow we are going to head to the Bronx Museum to check out the Henry Chalfant: Art vs Transit exhibition! We love to try out new restaurants so you can find us hanging out somewhere with a good plate of food or crate-digging at a record store.
Find out more on Bianca – here
Find out more on Victor – here
Photography by: Patrick Spears
