artsy forager

Posted on April 9, 2015

Something about spring brings to mind the word lush. The landscape here in Northern California has been filled with blossoms and green. It’s like the earth is ready to explode with the joy of warmth and sun following the grey of winter. But we know all this riotous color is short lived, soon to give way to the scorched earth of summer. These abstract paintings by Australian artist Todd Hunter remind me that the overabundance of life isn’t to be taken for granted.

Just as Hunter’s paintings are a deluge of color and texture, so does our life sometimes seem overflowing with happiness and good fortune. We store up those feelings, to be called upon in the midst of the drought. But right now the rains are coming and we relish the abundance while we have it.

To see more of Todd Hunter‘s work, please visit his website.

Images via the artist’s website and the website of his representing gallery, Scott Livesay Gallery.

Abstract Art Daily Artsy Paintings

Posted on April 8, 2015

For painters, it can be so intoxicating to fall in love with those first strokes laid on a canvas. They can seem so pure, so guileless. It’s tempting to call it done. But what we learn over time is that choosing to cover and rework can bring depth and clarity that wasn’t there at the beginning stages. We might lose something we loved, but we always know it is still there, under the latest cover of paint.

Charleston artist Brian Coleman knows a thing or two about what he calls “excessive reworking”. Painting intuitively and to music, Brian’s thoughts and feelings flow freely onto canvas. Yet with many a freewheeling emotion, sometimes those first strokes need to be reigned in. Just as we push aside a hurt to focus on what is better, so his work reminds us to cover what was in hopes of finding better in the new.

To see more of Brian Coleman‘s work, please visit his website.

All images are via the artist’s website. Artist found via Anne Irwin Fine Art.

Abstract Art Daily Artsy Sculpture

Posted on April 7, 2015

Momentum can be a tricky thing. If we’re moving in a positive direction, building and maintaing momentum is crucial. But if we’ve begun sliding into bad habits or toward danger, we need to do everything we can to stop the propulsion. In her Plank sculptures, New York artist Leslie Wayne takes her paint on a journey, pushing and piling like lava flowing down a hillside.

Sometimes we can temporarily stop the slide, but what if it just keeps coming, piling and piling until it overflows? Maybe the trick is to just let it slide. Sometimes we need to allow ourselves the freedom to shift so that we can position ourselves to move away from one thing and build toward another. The shifting can be tricky, though. Overcorrecting might delay or detour. But if just allow a tiny, scary bit of sliding, we move with greater purpose.

To see more of Leslie Wayne‘s work, please visit her website.

All images are via the artist’s website.

Daily Artsy Landscapes Paintings

Posted on April 6, 2015

Mr. F and I have an ongoing difference of opinion. When we’re hiking, he is all about big, open, impressive views. I like hikes that take me deep into the forest where the light does magical things among a myriad of textures. But no matter the view, the point is to get out and just see! These paintings by Christopher Ryan Russell take us down both paths towards divine prospects.

On occasion, Mr. F and I both get what we want– a journey that takes us deep down into the forest and then up and out into an amazing landscape view. Russell’s work well represents that dichotomous marriage between what lies beneath and what is to be found above. One would not be nearly as thrilling without the journey to or from the other.

Check out Christopher Ryan Russell‘s website to see more of his work.

All images are via the artist’s website.

Collage Daily Artsy

Posted on April 3, 2015

Before the mister and I began traveling together, I lived in the same city my entire life. The urge to wander was always there, lurking beneath the surface. I would feed it now and again with weekend trips with friends but never imagined doing anything close to our life today. In each new place, we make a list of what we’d like to see and do in our short time there. And every time, we’re amazed by how many locals are less acquainted with their home territory than we become. This series of collages by Amy Alice Thompson explores the journey of exploration.

Nothing substitutes visiting a place in person. Even the most beautiful photograph or painting can’t capture the sounds, the smells, the essence of what we experience first hand. As Mr. F and I travel, we’re fortunate to be able to really immerse ourselves into each place. We explore not simply as tourists but as temporary citizens. Some places fall short of expectation, others exceed it beyond what we had hoped. But each time, the value is in the exploration.

To see more of the work of Amy Alice Thompson, please visit her website. Where are you exploring this weekend?

All images are via the artist’s website.

Abstract Art Daily Artsy Paintings

Posted on April 2, 2015

Are you a piler? At any given time, we live with at least half a dozen piles scattered among us– stacks of mail, bills, laundry, books, you name it. Sometimes one pile begets another pile and so on and so on. These paintings by Brigid Watson, with their heavily layered texture reminded me that the piles are simply the layers of life.

In Watson’s paintings, the layers of paint swirl together, overlap, sometimes just piling one right on top of the other. So it is with our own piles. We try to keep things neat and compacted but that just isn’t the way life works most of the time. The piles continue and soon we can only catch glimpses of what lies beneath. The layers add to the foundation, creating movement, color, creating life.

To see more of Brigid Watson‘s work, check out her Facebook page. I chose to focus on these textural paintings but I fell in love with everything she does!

All images are via the artist’s Facebook page.

Abstract Art Daily Artsy Paintings

Posted on April 1, 2015

Our little apartment here in Marin County is on top of a hill, looking down on a small valley below, surrounded by trees. We delight in leaving the windows open, each glimpse out feels like the view from a treehouse! Every morning, as I groggily try to get my bearings post-alarm-ring, I catch tiny little slivers of the sunrise through the trees.

Occasionally, those small slices propel me out and up the steps to see the full view. But most of the time, I’m content with those tiny little looks. The bigger picture is in the beyond and there is comfort in knowing it is there, yet I don’t feel compelled to always seek it out. I’m safe and content up here in the trees and the slivers are enough. Just a little taste can be just as satisfying as eating the whole pie.

Abstract paintings featured by Portland artist Laurie Danial. See more on the artist’s website.

All images via the artist’s website.

Abstract Art Daily Artsy Paintings

Posted on March 31, 2015

I’ve always loved being outside. When I was young, my brother and I would spend entire Saturdays outside, only coming in when we heard my dad’s special ( and loud! ) whistle. As the years went by, it seemed like the opportunities to be outside became fewer. But that old ache has been renewed and these days, I can’t wait to get out to where I can breathe. Artist Eric Aho‘s abstract paintings capture that magical feeling that only the freshest of air can bring.

Mr. F and I like to seek out lesser traveled trails– definitely a challenge while we’re in the Bay Area. But even if the solitude is short lived, we soak up every second. One of us will pause– shhh! The other always asking what is it? What do you see? What do you hear? What we hear is nothing. Quiet. Peace. Air in, worries out.

To see more of Eric Aho‘s work, please visit his website.

All images are via the artist’s representing galleries, Hidell Brooks Gallery and DC Moore Gallery. Artist found via Hidell Brooks.

Daily Artsy Figurative Paintings

Posted on March 30, 2015

It can be a struggle to find your people. When we’re young and not yet fully who we are meant to be, we often find ourselves in the midst of people simply because they are the ones that are around or because of a longing to be cool, popular, etc. And life can still be that way. On social media and in the blog world especially, we’re bombarded with images of the “cool kids” doing amazing things, enjoying success. It can make us long to be a part of their pack.

But what I’ve learned, and believe me it’s taken a long time, is that there is a group of people that will get you. And those who don’t can be fun to hang with occasionally, but they aren’t your people. Your people, your tribe, are the ones who hold your hand through thick and thin, who get your jokes, who understand your passions. They are out there.

Featured artwork by New Orleans artist Erica Lambertson. See more of Erica’s work on her website.

All images via the artist’s website. Artist found via Gallery Orange.

Daily Artsy Landscapes Paintings

Posted on March 27, 2015

A sense of belonging. We grow up seeking it. From the start, we are a part of our family, but as we grow and mature, we look outside of those familiar faces to find our community. For some, it happens quickly and remains unchanged, for others it fluctuates with time and seasons and the search is a longer, more arduous effort. These paintings by Ian McClean seem to be manifestations of that feeling of being on the outside, trying to find your way in or perhaps, deciding whether you’d like to go in at all.

We all know what it’s like, that dissatisfaction with where you are but the uncertainty of exactly where you belong. In younger years, it seems easy to find “our people”, circumstances often do it for us. But as we move through life and decide for ourselves where and how we spend our time, finding where we belong becomes more of a challenge. To a certain extent we’ll all feel like a square peg in a round hole, maybe forever. Could that be so that we’ll never get too comfortable?

To see more of Ian McLean‘s work, please visit his website.

All images are via the artist’s website.

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All posts are written by Lesley Frenz, unless otherwise stated. If you would like to repost something you see on Artsy Forager on your own blog, please provide a link back to the original post. All artwork images are the property of the individual artists, please link to this site or theirs when reposting and credit the artist appropriately. Artsy Forager contains some contextual affiliate links. An affiliate link means that I receive commission on sales of the products that are linked to in noted posts. So if you click on a link and make a purchase from an affiliate site, such as Mantle Art or Great.ly, then I may make a commission from that purchase. Those affiliate links may also be found on my Pinterest page. Artsy Forager reserves the right to delete any comments deemed as inappropriate. Play nicely, please.

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