I am a lover of stories.  Ever since I was a little girl, cuddled in my grandmother’s arms, listening to her read me story after story, I adore being drawn into another world, wondering what will happen next.  Whether in novels, the spoken word, song or artwork, I adore anything ( and anyone!  My hubby George is a wonderful storyteller ) with a tale to tell.

So when I came across the work of painter Shannon Richardson at the RiverSea Gallery in Astoria, OR, I was drawn in by their narrative quality.  Each painting feels like the viewer is walking into the midst of a story.

These are illustrations of stories, but not completely fictional ones.  What Richardson paints, is memories of illusions of her own memories.  Not always as they actually occurred, but how they live in her mind, heart and dreams.

In these visual narratives, Richardson creates a fantastical world that is at once familiar and foreign.  Dream-like visages filled with other worldly characters and landscapes, but the feelings surrounding the imagery are universal– hopefulness and helplessness, elation and despair.

Each image is a fable to which we can relate, not because of our experience of the fantastical creatures or dreamlike quality, but because we have all been in situations of betrayal, soaring happiness, quiet contentment and such.  We all have our memories of the heart in common.

To see more of Shannon Richardson’s work, please visit her website.  In addition to RiverSea Gallery, you can also see her work in person at The Churchill Gallery in Newburyport, MA and The Joanne Artman Gallery in Laguna Beach, CA.

The featured image is The Companionship of Memories.

All images are courtesy of the artist’s website.