Dreyfoos senior envisions career in art world

By Faran Fagen Special to The Post
Posted Jan 7, 2020 at 8:01 AM

Most of this 18-year-old?s artwork begins with a mental image or scene that she would like to bring into the real world. She then blends her idea with whatever media she feels best suits her vision.

?Surrealism has been my passion since a young age,? Milan Kaplan said. ?The concept of being able to manifest my visions into a space where it can be seen and interacted with has always been fascinating to me.?

The Boca Raton ?dark artist prodigy? was one of the youngest featured at Scope Miami 2019, an international exhibition of artwork that was on display last month in Miami Beach.

She was part of the bG Gallery, which is based in Santa Monica, Calif., and like other accomplished artists, specializes in art that has crossed traditionally contentious ideologies.

Kaplan has always possessed a passion for art. At age 12, she was accepted into Bak Middle School of the Arts, and is now a senior at Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts in West Palm Beach.

At just 18, Kaplan is a commissioned artist and has had the honor of being the featured artist at The Heart of Delray Art Gallery, where her work also can be bought.
?My goal is to be able sell my art as a living,? Kaplan said. ?I don?t hope to influence society in any specific way, I just plan on getting my art out there.?
Her greatest accomplishment, she said, is getting accepted into Art Basel. She plans to major in art at one of the many universities she applied to.
She?s sold works to two galleries, always looking to emphasize form, lighting and content.

?There?s nothing specific I hope people gain from my work, I just create the art for fun and let people decide how they feel about it,? Kaplan said.
When she was younger, she was in a school medical program and studied a lot of anatomy. She likes to apply that knowledge when warping the human figure in her art.

Although her tastes are always changing, one of her most cherished pieces remains her painting of lounging alien women.
?I like the way the colors I used work together,? Kaplan said. ?I thought of this piece the same way I did with all my others. I put together an image in my head I?d want to bring to life and then I did it.?