Art & Life with Lauren Bass

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Bass.

Lauren, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I have been an artist my entire life, but my path as an artist hasn’t been linear. Whether doodling in the margins of notebooks or sketching at home, I was always drawing as a child. However, the high school I went to didn’t offer art so I had no formal training until college. There I took my first painting class and was hooked. I would observe a still life setup, mixed colors, replicate the abstract shapes and then step a few paces back. Incredibly, there was the image on my canvas. It felt like magic! I found that time stood still when I was painting I was so absorbed! After getting a BA in Humanities, I got a BFA in graphic design and worked in advertising for several years. I put my career on hold when I had children but continued taking painting classes. As my children got older and more independent, I was able to be more serious, paint more frequently and study with many fabulous artists whose work I admired. I sought out some of the best artists in the country that work in my area of interest to study with. Luckily, many live locally.

Can you give our readers some background on your art?
Art captivates me. I love entering a world created by a skilled artist–a beautiful or sometimes poignant place, telling its story with gorgeous brush stroke of color and shapes. I enjoy doing all forms of representational art, landscape, still life and figurative. I work mostly in oils but also enjoy drawing with graphite and charcoal. I am interested in the effects of light; the moods it evokes, and the shapes it forms as it falls and travels across objects. I try to convey an emotional response to the subject matter before me. I particularly love portraiture. With my portraits, I look for the uniqueness in the sitter, how he or she varies from the norm, and strive to communicate this visually. Although it may seem cliché, I find as I paint a portrait there is so much beauty in the person before me, whether or not the sitter is conventionally attractive.

While it is not always easy, art is very rewarding. To start with materials and a blank canvas and produce an image feels like a magic trick. I believe a photograph is prose. A painting is poetry.

How do you think about success, as an artist, and what do quality do you feel is most helpful?
The conundrum of an artist is that the goal posts of success are always moving down field, as you grow artistically, you learn more of what you don’t know. You’re always working towards mastering more skills and principals. The successes are thrilling. Sometimes it might be as simple as a beautiful color note or brushstroke passage on a painting. Other times, you create a painting that seems to work beyond your capabilities. It’s a high. I’ll stare at it and think “I can’t believe I created that”. However, progress is not linear. Some paintings flow off my brush and onto the canvas and with others I’ll struggle, with growth and accumulation of knowledge comes an increase in expectations. Your eye becomes more sophisticated and you expect more of your work.

They say when you first start you paint what you know, meaning you don’t know yet how to look and your brain takes over and sees the symbols of objects it’s been conditioned to see. Then, you paint what you see. You’re able to see the abstract shapes and colors accurately instead of these symbols. Finally, you know what you see. After years of study, you understand what you are seeing and why, and thus can more accurately visually communicate. This is hard work. To succeed, passion is essential. A strong work ethic and grit are also critical. “Miles and miles of canvas” is the adage for the recipe to success. I tell people art is like a sport. Those who are successful are the ones who work at it every day. You could be the most talented athlete but if you’re sitting on a bench, you go nowhere.

What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
My work is shown at Waterhouse Decor, Hingham, MA http://www.waterhousedecor.com and at Francesca Anderson Gallery in Lexington, http://fafineart.com. I also take commissions. My website is Laurenbassart.com. I can be reached through my website portal or laurenbass156@gmail.com

Contact Info:

• Address: Lauren Bass
  9 Meadowview Road
  Hingham, MA 02043
• Website: laurenbassart.com
• Phone: 617-909-1266
• Email: laurenbass156@gmail.com
• Instagram: laurenbassart
• Facebook: Lauren Bass

Image Credit:
Photos of paintings by Lauren Bass

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