Meet Diane Novetsky of Diane Novetsky Studio in Somerville

Today we’d like to introduce you to Diane Novetsky.

Diane, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’ve been a painter for over 40 years and moved to Boston from my hometown of Detroit, Michigan in 1981. When I moved here, I expected to paint at night and teach art in public school classrooms during the day. In the 80’s teaching positions were scarce and I ended up learning graphic design while working as a “paste-up” artist for a community paper. I eventually learned design on the early Macintosh computers and went into business as a freelance designer. Around 2005 I started making the transition to more time as a painter, and part-time as a graphic designer.

Today I work full-time on my painting at Somerville’s Vernon Street Studios. My work is best described as “lyrical abstraction”. I see myself as an explorer of foreign lands that are uncovered in the process of painting. Color and light are the keys to defining my “terra incognita”. I enjoy playing with surface quality, and creating a tactile sensuality that embodies light, rather than merely reflecting it.

I’ve shown my work recently at the Art Complex Museum in Duxbury, MA, Galatea Fine Arts Gallery in the Sowa art complex in Boston, Tufts University Art gallery, Boston Convention Center, Danforth Museum, Framingham,
and the Brickbottom Gallery.

I’m a founding member of the Brickbottom Artists Building in Somerville, which has recently celebrated its 30th Anniversary.

Has it been a smooth road?
I love what I do, and I try to remember that it’s all about the journey as an artist, not a specific end point. That said, it’s difficult to make a living as an artist, so I’m very grateful for the support of my wonderful husband and the encouragement of some great local collectors, without which it would have been hard to keep everything afloat.

Other than the financial challenges, the creation of art is all about just showing up at your studio and being open to what arises in the process of making art. I don’t wait for inspiration, I find it in the process of painting and hold on tight when I discover something new or exciting worth exploring.

I feel more excited and energized now than I did as a younger artist, because I appreciate just having the ability to go into my studio and keep the work flowing.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Diane Novetsky Studio – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
I create paintings in acrylic (water-based) paints on canvas. My abstract paintings are ripe with saturated, not quite earthly color, from acid greens to pink pearl iridescence. They are populated with shape-shifting forms that define a universe ever-expanding and contracting. I intend them to challenge (and reward) the viewer with a playful energy, mystery and joie de vivre that I feel demands expression in an age of turbulence and irony.

For many years my work expressed the light and energy of land and sea–I thought of my paintings as abstract landscapes. Today, my paintings still convey much of that sense of nature. However, they’ve gone beyond that to encompass organic forms, curving biomorphic shapes, and a horizonless space, that can resemble outer galaxies.

Lyrical color, sumptuous textures and a sense of whimsy sets my painting apart from other abstract painters. I’m proud of the joy and delight my paintings have brought to many others.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love Somerville/Boston for the diversity of the population, the cultural richness of its offerings; including, museums, restaurants, universities and parks and recreational activities.

Part of living in a city is knowing that you’re living in an urban environment and that sometimes you physically need to get away to enjoy more “green” and open air. Somerville can be challenging with the amount of traffic, congestion and construction activity always going on. When I need a “nature fix”, my husband and I get on our tandem bicycle and bike around one of the coastal cities on the North or South Shores of Boston.

Contact Info:

• Address: 6 Vernon Street
  C-213 Somerville, MA 02143
• Phone: 617-697-3768
• Email: dianenovetsky@gmail.com
• Website: http://www.dianenovetsky.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dianenovetsky/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/diane.novetsky

Nick of Time, acrylic on canvas, 20 x 20

Window on the Heart, acrylic on canvas, 20 x 24

Golden Reef, acrylic on canvas, 60 x 36
Image Credit:
Photography: Art Guercilena

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