ABOUT

DENISE LAURIN ARTIST STATEMENT  

 

My practice is centered on the universal idea of moving from darkness into light as expressed through the human form, especially dancers.  My first image, “Resurrection,” represents this idea using stark black and white oil out of which the figure emerges in 
a range of values.

 

I am intrigued by the capacity of dance to communicate emotion and spirituality. I work toward capturing transcendence of the physical into the non-material, as well as death and renewal. “Against the Wind” approaches “dematerialization” and I continue to push toward my vision. One way is through abstraction as in “Transcendence” and “Against the Wind Abstract.”

 

Through my art, I inspire release from dark, afflictive emotions for myself and others. “Darkness into Light,” for example, represents the debilitating effects of depression, which I have experienced in the past. The figure is mired in the darkness as the light pulses through.

 

Educated in Catholic school as a child, religious memories of veils, the cross, and the prayer gesture, as seen in “Mortality” and “Atonement” loom in my consciousness and appear in my work. 

 

I am a realist in my approach to painting. I work from life and from reference photos, both my own and published. My artistic ability manifested in portraiture when I was young, so I have included two portraits. Painting in oil is paramount to my practice and I also work in graphite and charcoal pencil drawing. The work I have submitted are all done in oil on canvas. My goal is continuous improvement toward my vision.

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PROCESS

Sometimes I sketch my compositions in graphite, and I use digital tools like Photoshop to explore a variety of possibilities. In “Kathak Dancer,” for example, I used Photoshop to add the sculpture of Shiva Nataraja and the pattern to my compositional reference. I can play with more compositional ideas more quickly. The model for the portrait is one of my private students who is a Kathak dancer. The subject interested me because of the sacred nature of dance in Hinduism.

 

I paint directly onto the canvas without drawing first. The exploration of angles, form, and color directly on the canvas feels like sculpting and is the most satisfying part of painting to me. Trained to paint using a smooth blended technique, I’ve begun to experiment with texture and abstraction.

 

INSPIRATION

An insatiable curiosity and desire for deep understanding fuel my work as an artist. As part of my process, I studied dance throughout my life for a visceral and experiential understanding of how the body moves, and to understand how to transcend the physical body. I have seen many dance performances and have traveled extensively to see art in person. Equally important to my work has been my deep exploration of art history on the post-graduate level and ultimately as an art history professor for nearly twenty years with ancient art, non-western art, and the Italian Renaissance as my areas of special interest. Painters who inspire me are John Singer-Sargent and Gerhard Richter.