Unearthed: paintings by Louise Fischman

Presented by Salt Lake City Public Library at Salt Lake City Public Library Main Branch

Paintings by Louise Fischman – Art Exhibit runs Sep 30 through Nov 10.

ARTIST STATEMENT:

percolate agitate
filtrate permeate
precipitate saturate
concentrate marinate
contemplate educate
anticipate appreciate

I create paintings that are inspired by the earth’s processes and energies.
The seemingly solid geological forms in a landscape give way to cracks, seams and flow lines that mingle, cross, and compress as they melt into fantastic patterns. These fractal structures endlessly shift in perspective ranging from the enormous to the microscopic. Forms at their smallest scale are mirrored in the larger spaces they inhabit. I continue to be inspired by this mysterious and beautiful occurrence.
While constantly arranging and rearranging shapes and colors within my compositions, I’ve found an uncanny correspondence between our planet’s everchanging conditions and our own psychological and emotional perspectives.
I have always been obsessed with color, particularly the range of luminosity and richness it exhibits in nature. I marvel at the interplay of light and shadow in natural forms. Light and color permeate my artwork in whichever medium I happen to be working in, be it oil, acrylic, watercolor, colored pencil, ceramic glazes, or glass mosaic.
The immediacy of colored pencils helps me to discover the landscape’s underlying structures. I layer color on top of color until the drawing has the depth and richness of a painting. When I work with fluid media such as watercolors, I compare the sensuous movement of paint across paper to the earth’s hydrologic systems. It echoes the imprint of flowing water as it leaves its mark on solid land.
I see my work as a dialogue between the natural sciences and my own psyche. I find delight in observing both nature’s underlying organizing principles and its simultaneous bursts of chaos.

I create paintings that are inspired by the earth’s processes and energies. The forms generated by the earth’s dynamic changes tend to repeat themselves in what are called “self- similar” patterns or fractals. They emerge in both images taken from aircraft as well as in microscopic views in nature. The design of the tiny form is mirrored in the larger space that it inhabits. This observation has drawn me to landscape as the primary theme in my work.

The radical shifting of perspectives in scale has an emotional resonance for me. I see an uncanny correspondence between shifting physical scales and changing psychological and emotional perspectives. Rather than appreciating landscape for only its abundant scenic qualities I am also fascinated with the mysterious organizing principles and forces that underlie it.

I am obsessed with color. I am drawn to the luminosity and richness of colors found in nature and the interplay of light and shadow I see in natural forms, Light and color permeate my artwork, in whatever I am working in, oil, acrylic, watercolor, colored pencil, ceramic glazes or glass mosaic.

I particularly enjoy working with liquid media such as watercolor. The liquidity and sensuous flow of the paint across the paper is so reminiscent of the earth’s hydrologic systems. It echoes the imprints of how flowing water leaves its mark on the solid land.

I see my work as a dialogue between the natural sciences and my own interior world. It is perhaps an attempt to understand the natural order of things. At the same time, I find delight on observing that tipping point where order can become a burst of unpredictable randomness. Then at any moment, that chaos can give rise to a new kind of unexpected order.

louisefischmanstudio.com

ARTIST BIO:

Louise Fischman was born and raised in the New York area. She considers herself fortunate to have had ready access to the city’s many cultural resources and diverse communities. She earned her BFA degree from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, and later, her Teacher Certification from the University of Utah.

Her relationship to the American West began when she was still a college student. She participated in a summer anthropological project with the Kaibab-Paiute Tribe in Arizona. The clear, stark, and colorfully eroded landscape had a profound impact on her. Soon after she found herself living in a very different but equally beautiful western landscape- the Chama Valley in northern New Mexico. Here she began to teach art to local children. These projects included large scale murals of the area’s history, cultures, and natural beauty.

Eventually, with her artist husband, Wayne Geary, she chose to relocate to Salt Lake City, Utah. After teaching as an artist in residence in schools throughout Utah, Louise had the opportunity to develop a therapeutic art program for behavioral health patients at Primary Children’s Hospital. For 30 years Louise has guided and supported many young people through their creative art processes, an integral part of their healing processes.

All the while Louise has actively pursued her own artwork. She has worked in a variety of mediums including drawing, painting in acrylic, oil and watercolor, glass mosaic and ceramic tile installations. She and Wayne have collaborated on numerous community art projects in public settings including schools, parks, and healthcare facilities.

She is currently working on a series of semi abstract landscape paintings in her studio. As time allows, Louise loves to do plein air drawing and painting while exploring wild places both near and far from home.

louisefischmanstudio.com