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September Issue 2005
Beaufort Art Association in Beaufort, SC, Features Works by Tricia Gardner
by Claudia Cornett
"To
paint it you must experience it. The light, the smells, the feel
of the landscape cannot be replicated in the studio," says
Tricia Gardner. She is the feature artist for the new exhibit,
Local Color, and Then Some, at the Beaufort Art Association's
Gallery in Beaufort, SC. Her show opens Sept. 13 and continues
through Oct. 22, 2005. The exhibit presents more than 20 oil landscapes.
Gardner's subject matter ranges from shrimp boats and marsh scenes to old country gas stations, low country cottages and some of the grand dames (old homes) of Beaufort. Locals will recognize scenes from Coosaw Creek, Eddings Point and Gays Seafood. Travel experiences fuel Gardner's desire to portray the moods of different locations. The current show also includes a few landscapes from Big Sur, Elbow Key and the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Gardner's personal palette and expressiveness gives her what all artist seek - a recognizable style that is uniquely her own. Moody skies are backdrops for angular fish shacks and mysterious trees move with energetic colors and lines. Her art provokes strong emotional response and curiosity. How did she do that? is the question viewers are bound to ask.
"I've been drawing for as long as I can
remember," explains Gardner. Her life, however, has not always
been dominated by painting. She is a graduate of the Pennsylvania
State University, with graduate work at the State University of
New York and George Washington University. But her major was
business, not art. Her professional career spanned thirty years
with the Federal Government in Washington, DC, where she worked
for several major agencies. Her various assignments took her to
diverse locations that stirred her artistic imagination.
Location. Location. Location. These seem to be the big three for Gardner, who prefers to do plein air painting. That means she chooses to work in the open air or outdoors. I get an energy and inspiration from nature, from the local marshes of the Morgan Creek and Oak Island to the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, she explains. Artists also choose to paint plein air because natural light is so much more revealing than artificial light.
An important creative spark for Gardner has
always been random beauty of nature. She is very attuned to the
emotional qualities of art and paints what she feels to capture
the moment. Her goal is to paint a personal
response to a setting - her impression of a moment in time. The
results are works that are impressionistic, with some bordering
on the abstract. Photorealism is the antithesis of her style.
Restless and impatient by nature Gardner is
always on the move. This is reflected in both her art style and
the process she uses to paint. She never paints sitting down and
at times she paints with reckless abandon. A former teacher told
her that "great art is not made my timid people". Gardner
is not timid. Her paintings show a boldness that attract immediate
attention. She insists aggression, energy, tenacity and perseverance
serve
her well as an artist.
So, does this spritely artist ever run out
of energy and ideas? "I am an avid golfer, tennis player,
skier and sailor. I travel extensively to pursue the beauty of
the planet," Gardner says. This ongoing search provides a
continuous stream of rich images for this painter who signs her
work with a simple "Tricia". She does get stuck, occasionally,
just like any artist. When Gardner's not sure where to go next
she uses an unusual technique: she asks the painting what it needs
and waits for it to reply. According to Gardner, "If the
moment is right the painting will paint itself."
Gardner resides on Dataw Island, SC, with her
husband, Lew, and dog, Nikki. She
begins the day watching the sunrise over Jenkins Creek from her
front yard. Again, it is the light that is important to her. "I
prefer early morning or evening to capture the moment and the
mood," she says.
Next comes an early morning jog with Nikki
and a run to the tennis court. Thus, the day is set in motion.
Afterward, that motion moves on to the easel in her studio. The
early morning visions form the basis for much of what she paints.
This is the very quiet and private time where many thoughts and
paintings are ironed out, she explains. The creative process depends
on such incubation time. At the days end, she watches the sunset
over the marshes from her back yard.
It is apparent that Gardner's muse is ever
changing in venues that give the necessary visual stimulation
for her to paint with such passion. She feels that sometimes they
are like gypsies packing up and moving from one
location to another with little or no notice. Gardner is attracted
to a Bohemian approach and says she explores widely at her plein
air sites - even walking on the wild side, when necessary, to
capture a more dramatic or
unusual point of view. While plein air painting is Gardner's chosen
venue, she does paint from photographs or memory, at times. Her
preferred medium is oil, although she has experimented with watercolor
and acrylics.
Since retiring from government life, Gardner has traveled extensively to take plein air workshops. She paints with favorite artists in the deserts of the South West, the California Coast, the Caribbean Islands, Key West, Sicily and Spain. She has also studied art at the Torpedo Factory in Alexandria, VA, the Loudoun Academy of Art in Leesberg, VA, and the Delaplaine Academy in Frederick, MD. More locally she has participated in workshops through the Hilton Head Art League with Ron Ranson, Tom Lynch, Charles Gruppe and Susan Sarabeck.
"Each new work shop and location offer a new adventure, a new challenge to reckon with," explains Gardner.
For more information check our SC Institutional
Gallery listings, call the gallery at 843/379-2222 or at (www.allbeaufort.com/baa/).
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