I am always late.
I feel bad about it. I have tried to change, but somehow I still believe I can go into my studio and make just one little correction to a painting. It’s like a terrible addiction. I look up and hours have passed.
I’m not only late, I arrive with paint on my hands, on my clothes, in my hair or all of the above. I am such a lucky person because painting is so much fun it makes all the above worth while.
I always wanted to be involved in art so, for many years, while I worked in an office, I took a figure drawing class. The figure is just intoxicating. Looking at someone’s skin is like looking through the petal of a flower. The way a living thing holds light is so beautiful.
But then I fell in with a group of plein air painters. How wonderful it is to go out into nature with a group of friends, observe what light does to landscape, capture the moment in acrylic, and then go to a critique, which is really just an excuse to talk more about art.
And lately, because I’m afraid I won’t be able to tote my easel and paints over the hills forever, I’ve joined an open studio still life group with alla prima hopes. I’ve relished the challenges presented by composition and design.
Art has been for me like an enduring friendship, learning a lovely foreign language or being married the to right person for a long time–each year just when I think I’ve learned everything there is to know, I realize I’ve just scratched the surface and there is so much more to come.
Fran is a member of the Plein Air Painters of the Four Corners, a group of artists passionate about creating art in the out-of-doors. Plein air is a French term used by painters since the 19th century to describe painting done outside on location instead of in the studio.
Gallery
Fran’s work is displayed at Artifacts Gallery in Farmington, New Mexico. Learn more about Artifacts on its Facebook Page.
Curriculum Vitae
Artist Statement
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Recent Shows
2019
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2018
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2017
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2016
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2015
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2014
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2013
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2012
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2011
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2010
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Awards
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