The Pulse: Style File 4

Welcome to the third edition of The Pulse: an artist survey. This collaborative project aims to introduce you to new artists, help you get to know familiar faces even more, and allow you access into the creative hearts and minds of a very talented crew of individuals. For links to the sites of the participating artists, please click here.


Today's question: In a few words or a few sentences, how would you describe your artistic style? The following is the last of four posts to answer this question.


Judy Wilkenfeld My artistic style has to be fluid, meaning the style is dependent on the type of Visual Anthology™ I am telling. It can certainly be termed eclectic mixed with some grunge yet with my use of fabrics and textures I try to take some of the harshness out of it. If you are looking for one word then maybe “psychotic” would be the answer as I like to blend the harsh with the soft, the simplistic with the highly detailed, the static with the fluid – a true reflection of the lives of those I am trying to tell the story of.

Judy Wise I really try to draw as well as I can and it comes out as 'style'. The magic is that I really can't draw very well but I accept that; it's unique.

Kelly Kilmer Fun. Free. Open. Honest. True. Real. Me.

Sarah Fishburn motley, polychromic, tender

Roxanne Stout How to describe my style? Such a hard question...In college I majored in Biological Illustration and I loved details, the tinier the better; stippling, cross-hatching and my super sharp ink pens. Now I still love nature but am much more impressionistic. I am always trying to loosen up, relax and paint or create more from my heart. Sometimes I squeeze and blend my paints right on my canvas and work fast and obsessively using large messy paint brushes, other times you can find me sketching and painting birds or plants with my watercolors and tiny brushes. Like many other artists, I love to use paint brushes that were passed down from my mother. She was a painter too, and I hope some of her talent and ability to capture beauty has passed down to me.

Kelly Parker I made up my own movement/style for this…LOL, I like to use bright colors and simple compositions for all my work and they are generally created on a square or rectangular base, so I call it Expressionistic Minimalism. I have been toying with the idea to use only squares for my next set of work. I just finished a series of 5 titled “Poppies” on 8” by 8” stretched canvas. I like working smaller and square, so I want to explore this avenue a bit further.

Kathy Wasilewski I love working with vintage images and elements, incorporating such items as rusted metal, vintage lace, and soft colors. A friend of mine once termed my artwork as "time-worn elegance", and I have deemed that term as the ideal way to describe my work.

Linda Woods My style changes with my mood! My art is really a mixed media story of my life told with images, bold dripping color, and words.

Roben-Marie Smith This have been changing lately as I have been trying my hand at digital art. I find that I have been enjoying scanning my altered work into PhotoShop and then digitally creating something totally new. I even decided to go back to school and take some digital design classes to further this pursuit.

Sally Turlington Style? I have style? Thanks for the vote of confidence, Seth. As far as I'm concerned I'm still honing a definite style. My friends say they know when a piece of art is mine, but for the life of me, I don't know how they could. Someone once called my work "clever and thought provoking." If only it were always that, I'd take it! As far as a type of art, I do like to make grunge better than pretty and conglomerated better than simple but always, always, I want it to have at least a twist of humor or irony or make a point, teach a lesson, or in some way make a difference to the viewer.

Valerie Foster Well, it's hard for me to describe or pin it down. I'm sure I have my own, individual style, but putting it into words is difficult. I think I would use two words -- very textural and serendipitous. I majorly LOVE texture, and I rarely plan out my work in advance. So I never know what it will end up looking like, and quite often, the end result surprises even me. Most times I'm pleased, but sometimes, not so much! I love using different techniques, bold colors, and lots of different items in my art. Such as: fabric, fibers, all kinds of papers, rusted items, found items, and unusual embellishments. Also, I love using caulk, wallboard joint compound, and spackle for great texture. I try to use supplies and items not meant for art. It's kind of a challenge to me, that I enjoy experimenting with.

Sue Pieper Layered, textured, colorful. When doing collage work, the backgrounds typically have about a dozen layers to build up a history which will lead me to what image to use, and the story evolves from there. I really have to just let it happen, no matter what I plan in my head, what lands on the canvas seems to have a mind of it's own. But in the end, it all has to make sense-I won't add anything if it doesn't add to either the composition of the piece, or the story that it's telling. When making jewelry, it's all about technique in making something that will last, both in style and material. The design can be tricky as my necklaces are almost always asymmetrical, and have run into a few engineering issues because of that-it's all good though as it gives me a chance to learn something. Learning to make & design jewelry was a real challenge for me, so I don't take it lightly. I'm proud of the fact that I can do it, and I won't make anything that I wouldn't wear myself. In fact, I almost always wear each necklace for at least a few hours to make sure all is right with it in both comfort & construction.

Binky Bergsman I like to take everything down to it’s most basic element. The simple shapes are what I like.

Mistie Jordan I love anything old. It pulls me like a magnet. No matter what I’m creating with or what the end result is, I have to convey some sense of history with what I’ve done. Or I need to make it look like it does. This usually includes words in some why as well, so I guess I’m rather narrative too. Okay, so a few words…collage, layers, rust and fabric pulled together to create a sense of history of some kind.

Stephanie Mcatee I love this question, and am asked it a lot! and my answer is this:edgy, not pretty, raw, realistic, deep, passionate; mystic.

Gina Petterson Bohemian eclectic. I haven't had an art class, I don't understand composition or coloring. I got started scrapbooking as a teen preserving photos of The Jackson 5, Osmond Brothers and David Cassidy. Later on, I began to use real items as embellishments ( concert ticket stubs, prom corsages and or buttons)... not the things that were archival or high on the agenda of some of the major scrapbook companies. Suddenly, I had an urge to work on just cardstock or a canvas.

Dina Wakley Organic, impulsive, messy, expressive.

Paul Sears I like to shoot what I see. Not a lot of setup, lighting, styling, etc. Being an advertising guy by day I see a lot of commercial photography, and I know how staged everything can get. For my personal work, I prefer to go a little more minimalist and just try and shoot it how I see it.

Kathleen Botsford I don't really know if I have a style. All of my art, jewelry included is inspired by my love of ancient cultures and spiritual traditions of every kind. I weave elements of sacred geometry, numerology and astrology into my work as well as symbology and mythology. Lot's of ologies huh? I am devoted to the Blessed Mother in all of Her many forms and guises. I rely most heavily on this connection to the Divine Feminine in most all of my work.

Lisa Call Modernism meets abstract expressionism in textiles

Lelainia Lloyd This is always such a tough question for me. I can never come up with a way to describe my work that I feel comfortable with. I think it has something to being too close to the work to see it as one thing or another. I suppose the hallmark of what I do is that the work is always balanced both in scale and colour and whenever possible, I am to honour my Canadian roots.

Kate Strickland Intuitive, organic, non-representational, emotive, spare. I strive to create work that is like a simple poem: economy of elements which are carefully assembled in a way that may evoke an emotional response yet be open to interpretation, and all the while celebrating beauty in the experience.

Trudi Sissons Style… I don’t know if I have a style. I create best intuitively. I am drawn to vivid colors, weathered textures and the grouping of disparate images. I usually sense an absence of words traveling through my mind when I get into it.

Kathy McCreedy I'm a fairly unimaginative sorter of tiny bits of chaos, which is readily apparent in my collage work. I make what appeals to me... try as I might, I can't get much deeper than that. Same goes for my calligraphy... I
make what I like. And if I don't like it, I cut it up or tear it up and use in
collage!

Kelsey O'Mullane This is a difficult question as I don’t particularly stick to a specific style. I do love odd, quirky, bizarre with a little bit of darkness thrown in for good measure but then a risqué or humorous quote might be just what a piece of work needs. I guess it depends more on my mood at the time as to whether I work with say “gothic” in mind or “renaissance style”. I like vintage though too….. I’m a Gemini and I like to think it’s the multiplicity of this personality that dictates my work. That’s my excuse anyway!

Lisa Dalke Free. I move the brush the way my arms tell me to...I often think I paint from the gut...Not sure what style that is.

Sarah Whitmire Hrm, this is hard because my styles change depending on my moods and audiences. Generally my style is vintage, feminine and rich.

Joanna Olson I'm inclined to say eclectic, experimental, (I work in oil, acrylic, watercolor, collage, traditional,landscapes, portraits and abstracts), feminine, colorful.....(in fact I'd like to try and stretch my other senses by trying something more restrained in the near future)......there's the experimental part of me trying to come out! I have always enjoyed working in a diversity of styles and with a variety of subjects, exploring painting techniques, always trying to find an appropriate way of expressing the feeling that attracted me to a subject.

Doreen Grozinger I love color and tend to work with bold and bright color. My painting style leans towards the surreal and love symbolism in my work. I also love to experiment, using a variety of mediums in my work… For now, my passion is working with a pigma pen and twinkling H2O's. In whatever medium I am using, I love to bring some message or inspiration to the viewer. I feel art to be an easy way to communicate. I am a mural artist, and therefore love to paint big, but in the last few years, I’ve developed a love for working small as well. My style, whether large or small usually has a lot of detail to it.

Seth Apter My style is infused with texture, layers, and depth. I try to create pieces with a sense of their own personal history, often weathered by time, distressed and imperfect. I find inspiration in uncovering and revealing the details of the story.