“Abstract art is the representation in palpable form of ideas or feelings that themselves are not necessarily abstract, but immaterial.”
Peter London
It is these immaterial and internal ideas and feelings that I explore in my paintings. Creating is about paying attention – in noticing the particular. I find my inspiration in nature, poetry, and the universal rhythms of life. I love that “things” can be metaphors for greater truths. I’m intrigued by the form, line, and patterns found in nature and of the story they tell. Not the obvious one that defines the object, but the narrative that portrays the intangible, the veiled, the mysterious. The way, for example, peeling bark tells me not merely about the tree or the nature of bark, but also about revelation, vulnerability, and transparency. As such, my paintings are about life; a blending of the external and internal, matter and spirit, observation and response.
Movement is one of the defining characteristics of my work and the initial marks on the canvas are gestural, connecting action with emotion as in lyrical dance or music. The second, and all subsequent marks, are an intuitive response to the previous one. The composition evolves as I work, building layers over a textured surface, often elements of collage, and using color to create a sense of depth.
I think of my paintings as an invitation to each viewer to look beyond the discernable physical world and beneath the surface of color, texture, and form to uncover new ways of encountering themselves and their world…rich with possibility.
Laurie Barmore