Free Spirits

Bart Exposito, 30, painter

On his work: They’re moderately sized abstract paintings, really flat and graphic, with a relationship to typography. inspirations: Charles Long, Richard Tuttle, Jessica Stockholder. on living with his art: I do it for a couple reasons. It complements what I’m going for in my apartment. Another reason is that so I can start to understand it better. on decorating: I’m influenced by mid-century design, but with a personal spin--I build some of my own furnishings and collect things from thrift stores and vintage stores. favorite possession: A Braun desk fan from the ‘70s.

Vintage ‘60s nylon mock turtleneck, $15, at The Wasteland, Los Angeles.

Pamela jorden, 30, painter

On her work: Graphic spaces collide with more pictorial or painterly spaces. I use Letraset to combine drawing and painting with language and design into chaotic spaces. inspirations: Juan Usle, a New York painter from Spain. on living with her art: I’ll bring works in progress home when I want to spend more time thinking about them, but mostly they stay at my studio. on decorating: I really love my couch. I like to have color in my house. I’m interested in simple designs and patterns. favorite possession: My walls.

Fause Haten print knit spandex dress, $325, at Lissi Laa, La Jolla, and Anastasia, Laguna Beach.

Tyler Vlahovich, 33, painter and sculptor

On his work: Crackpot spiritualism. My paintings are generally abstract-reduced landscapes, like a psychoscape, with figurative elements mixed with folksy renderings of otherworldly beings. inspirations: Palmer Hayden. People who have given form to their imaginary world. on decorating: I tend to live in an austere way--I have a couple of chairs. I find a lot of stuff in dumpsters or on the street. I have a truck so I’m really into picking up garbage. I love the alleys. favorite possession: A stool that’s extremely uncomfortable, clumsy and elegant.

Hugo Boss long-sleeved cotton shirt, $125, at Boss Hugo Boss, Beverly Hills, with vintage jeans, $20, at The Wasteland.

Dean Sameshima, 29, photographer

On his work: My photographs seem to exist in between the space of desire and gratification--perhaps a bit masochistic, but nonetheless beautiful and romantic. An instructor of mine once said of my work, “It’s like the Bechers gone clubbing.” inspirations: Christopher Williams, Richard Hawkins, Stephen Prina, Sherrie Levine, Larry Clark, Atget, Larry Johnson, Warhol. on living with his art: I live with a piece or two of my own work at times, but most of it is in my studio/garage. on decorating: Most of what I have is from my parents’ house. I have a fetish for shelves and stackable units. favorite possession: Two Noguchi lamps in my bedroom.

A.L. for Alicia Lawhorn hand-dyed cotton Western shirt, $160, at Ron Herman/Fred Segal Melrose, Los Angeles.

Aiko Hachisuka, 26, sculptor

On her work: I’m making a junkyard out of leftover fabric for my French bulldog, Fungus, so she can be a guard dog. She can eat there, sleep there and own all the junk. inspirations: Claes Oldenburg, Donald Judd. on living with her art: I live in my studio. Having my work around is getting to me. on decorating: I have no taste whatsoever in interior design. It’s really crucial but I can’t do it. Everything I have around me has been handmade, using plywood. favorite possession: I have a crazy couch--orange and black patterns, very busy.

Suss Designs round-neck cotton sweater, $369, at Suss Designs, Los Angeles, with Buzzelli scarf belt.

Peter Klare, 31, painter

On his work: It’s expressionistic painting with minimal sculpture--the subject is lower-middle-class furniture of Western culture. In my artwork I am trying to change the usual perspective on pieces of furniture to reveal the aspects of structure, thinking and aesthetics of Western culture. inspirations: Blinky Palermo and Martin Kippenberger. on living with his art: I wish I had big enough walls, but I don’t. It’s great if you have a space to put your art up and look at it. You always see something new and then you know what you’re going to change. on decorating: Light. Simple. Comforting.

Vintage cotton shirt, $14, at The Wasteland, Los Angeles, with Diesel snowboarder cotton pants, $99, at Diesel, Beverly Center and Santa Monica.

Amy Sarkisian, 31, sculptor and painter

On her work: The theme in my work seems to be monstrosity. Something like the monster meets the mundane. inspirations: James Ensor. Sometimes you see his work and it’s like you’re laughing with him at the fact that you’re going to die someday. on living with her art: Mostly I like blank walls. It keeps weight off of my brain and I can think more clearly. on decorating: My decorating style is “Tetris”--it’s more about whatever fits. favorite possession: My claw-footed bathtub. on home: It’s where I live and relax. It is also my band’s practice space twice a week. Every few months I clear out my studio and curate a show.

Eatman for Show Pony cotton-jersey tank, $95, at Show Pony, Echo Park.

Marina Kappos, 27, painter

On her work: I like the paintings to be part of the environment that they’re hung in--I fit canvases to the wall and I’ll have them wrap around the room. Recently I’ve started doing portraits in blank, very clinically white spaces. inspirations: Ed Ruscha and Lari Pittman. on living with her art: I have a really old painting that I did in college, a big painting that’s hanging in my apartment. on decorating: I like 1950s furniture because of the simplicity of design. I had a clean, minimal bookshelf made by 100X Better in L.A.--vaguely reminiscent of the ‘60s, but with a Japanese influence. favorite possession: I’m dying to have a porcelain puppy sculpture by Jeff Koons that’s actually a flower vase; it’s the cutest thing in the world.

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Styled by Scott Free/Rex; hair: Greg Lewandowski/Visages Style; makeup: Jeannia Robinette/Artist