Abstract More Art

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A young maiko - a geisha in training - strolls in an abstract landscape, her delicate face decorated in traditional makeup. The organic patterning surrounding...

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"This girl was posing for me on a trip to visit a ranch in Pagosa Springs, Colorado," shares artist Heather Foster. "She looked, to me, as if she was wearing black knee socks...

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"A rich veil of coastal air hangs over a broad grassy path in this composition," says artist Jesse Aldana. "The golden haze tinges the afternoon with a brilli...

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The last moments of daylight in a residential neighborhood. Woman walking her dog. Cool blues and purple in the landscape rest on a muted peach sky. Expressi...

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Artist Suren Nersisyan painted this impressionist coastal scene en plein on the beach in Malibu, California. He says his focus was on the color and texture of...

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A contemplative portrait rendered in bright oranges and green. Artist Gary Leonard first developed the abstract background and then worked the figure into the...

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"This painting was inspired by beautiful Vernazza, one of my favorite villages of Cinque Terre," shares artist Oksana Johnson. "On a bright sunny day, Vernazz...

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Artist Judy Mackey shares her joy in painting US flags. In this piece, the flag is painted at a stationary position set against an abstracted blue background....

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Artist Warren Keating displays an image of a man riding a bicycle from an aerial view. "This painting was inspired by an early morning cyclist traveling on a ...

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Artist Janet Dyer displays an expressionist landscape view of a Mediterranean forest. She paints the temperate shrubland on a warm summer afternoon. Janet pai...

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Red wildflowers line the Pacific Coast in this sunny scene of the Monterey Bay in California. Artist Lisa Elley says she is greatly inspired by Monet's work, ...

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Artist Suren Nersisyan presents a vibrant vineyard flourishing under the warm sun. As the bright sunlight falls on the rows of grapevines, intricate shadows c...

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A flowing, expressionist portrait of woman lost in dance and embracing the promise of a new day. "I created this painting as 2020 drew to a close and 2021 daw...

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Artist Lisa Elley loves painting flowers, as they resonate deeply with her. In this inspiring still life, she boldly mixes pinks, deep red, and yellow. Part o...

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Artist Gary Leonard presents a portrait of a woman in a tropical setting. He paints with an impressionist approach but leaves the background subtly abstract t...

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"This is a loosely painted scene based on a visit to a ranch in Stanley, New Mexico," shares artist Heather Foster. "I think they thought I was going to feed them. Sometimes a group of cattle will see me and run away like they imagine I'm thinking about burgers. But this group was curious and started towards me, with the ones in the distance moving at a quick pace, worried that they might miss out on something. Then we just paused & looked at each other for a bit." Heather captured the moment with her painting vividly portraying the scene. The cattle stand with inquisitive gazes before her. A bright underpainting shows through exemplifying the heat of the day and the amusing instance.

About the Artist
Artist Heather Foster captures an enduring image of the West. She paints the dramatic landscapes and stalwart animals she encounters on her adventures to ranches and rodeos. Heather says she has always known she wanted to be an artist. As a child, she spent her weekends and summers riding the bus into Philadelphia to attend art classes at Philadelphia College of Art, Moore College of Art, and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. Over the years, she's moved around the country quite a bit and done many jobs - everything from driving a pedicab (a giant tricycle that transports passengers) to art restoration and conservation (for one project, she unstretched and then restretched a $17 million painting that would not fit through the door of the buyer's house). The one constant though, no matter where she lived or what side jobs she held, she always made space and time to paint. Today, she works from a home studio in Santa Fe, painting from thousands of reference photographs she shoots on her travels. Her artwork has been featured in the magazines Southwest Art, American Art Collector, and Western Art Collector, and published in the books Art Journey New Mexico and The Book of the Horse.

Words that describe this painting: ranch, cattle, cow, herd, animal, western, country, countryside, panoramic, New Mexico, impressionism, animals, landscape, western, acrylic painting, purple

Gathering on the Plains...

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Using a limited palette of transparent purples and yellows, artist Valerie Berkely presents a calming abstract floral. "I want ...

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Artist Suren Nersisyan shows an inviting view of a vineyard that draws the eyes further towards a scenic mountain range lining the distance. Rows of grapevine...

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Artist Nancy Merkle shares that this painting was inspired by an adventure in rural Oregon. A small trail in the backcountry reveals a forest of pine and fir trees among rolling hills. Crisp light warms the golden hillside and pulls the viewer deeper into the scene.

About the Artist
Nancy Merkle's process begins with a glimpse of color, a flicker of light, a pattern, or a texture. Elements swirl in her mind for hours, sometimes days, sometimes weeks before a design clicks and is transferred to canvas. With the canvas in front of her, she works intuitively -- a mark here, a mark there, a little touch of color, a bit of texture -- until she is satisfied and declares the work finished. Currently Nancy's work leans toward abstraction; she doesn't paint the world as it is, but as she wishes it were. Bold colors and loose brush strokes are her goal. When she's not making art, Nancy travels the Pacific Coast with a bicycle strapped to the car and "curiosity in my back pocket."

Words that describe this painting: landscape, Oregon, Pacific Northwest, nature, forest, trail, road, woodland, hills, rural, outdoors, impressionist, pine, fir, trees, impressionism, landscape, representational, acrylic painting, green, yellow

Oregon Trail...

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"I admire pelicans. They are really sensational birds," shares artist Andres Lopez. "Being lovers of the sea, these birds are not usually seen in any other pa...

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"I've painted this contemplative piece when the pandemic started and the world started changing around us," shares artist Claudia Verciani. An elderly woman g...

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Artist Janet Dyer shares an impressionist perspective of a still lake on a quiet spring day. She paints pristine waters reflecting the lively trees in complem...

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"I spend all summer long at my studio on a big lake," shares artist Valerie Berkely, "and the shoreline is often a favorite subject. In this piece, I first ap...

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Artist Janet Dyer displays an expressive landscape of the highlands of France. Towering green trees stand against the azure skyline. "Provence is more than la...

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For years, artist Colette Wirz Nauke has found inspiration in the delicate, fleeting cherry blossoms that appear in early spring. "This floral painting expres...

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Using a light and soft palette, artist Mary Pratt paints a figure in a buoyant tulle dress surrounded by contrasting geometric shapes. With a pink rose in her hand, and a palm delicately placed under her chin, the woman exudes elegance heightened by her graceful manner. "I portrayed a scene where the levitating objects create action in an otherwise restful place."

About the Artist
Mary Pratt, a Georgia-based artist, is known for her impressionistic yet modern oil paintings that capture the world with a jovial poise. Her soft, ethereal palette is complemented by the occasional bright pop of color. The artist’s aesthetic choices are intuitive rather than premeditated. Through her gestural brushstrokes, Mary’s paintings summon a joyful, even childlike, emotional response. Her style is nuanced by a range of inspirations, including scenery from the state of Georgia. The personal edge that Mary brings to each painting alters and enhances recognizable subject matter, cultivating an imaginative visual experience.

Words that describe this painting: figure, figurative, contemporary, woman, people, dress, fashion, gentle, flower, soft, pastel, impressionism, oilpaint, impressionism, people, oil painting, pink

Seated In Perpetual Motion...

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A divided path in a forest preserve near artist Suzanne Massion's studio in rural Illinois. She captured the cool autumn day, punctuated with gold, ocher and warm yellows against the purple shadows along the pathway. The location is a favorite subject for Suzanne, and she often walks there for inspiration at different times of the year. "Baseball great Yogi Berra...

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"This is somewhat of an exaggerated view of a path in rural France," says artist Janet Dyer. An inspired take on a quiet trail, cutting diagonally across the ...

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Artist Janet Dyer depicts a lush green garden accented with a lazy brook reflecting the trees and clear sky above. "The grounds of French chateaux are usually extremely manicured," says Janet. "With geometrically designed features like straight-edged canals, the manor residence shows its preference of the time for order and symmetry."

About the Artist
Janet Dyer doesn’t like to spend too much time talking about her art, as she’d rather be creating it. She doesn’t have an artist statement, the traditional statement of purpose crafted by visual artists to explain their method. On becoming an artist, Janet simply states, “I picked up some crayons and pencils and brushes and kept using them.” She believes the process of creating art is equal in importance to the final product. The artist enjoys relinquishing control of her paintings to find delightful surprises in her so-called “mistakes.” Janet's expressively gestural yet bucolic landscapes are a testament to the success of her method.

Words that describe this painting: France, water, sunny, summer, brook, river, stream, garden, Europe, trees, hedge, landscape, impressionism, acrylicpaint, reflection, impressionism, landscape, acrylic painting, green

French Canal...

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Artist Judy Mackey says she asked her patrons to help her title this impressionist painting of orange tulips, and she loved the sug...

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Artist Shyun Song explains of her clean, minimalist oil paintings, "As an intense observer, I am interested in mythology and psychology. Whenever I come acros...

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Artist Jeff Fleming describes his painting style as kinetic impressionism. In this piece, a beagle triumphantly retrieves a stick thrown into the ocean. Jeff started the piece with a pencil sketch on the canvas, then with gloved hands, he applied oil paint using his fingers. Details were later added using brushes. Once these layers of paint dried, he moved the piece to his studio floor. "At this point, I whisked paint in random but authoritative strokes - a speckling technique which replicates water splashing."

About the Artist
Artist Jeff Fleming uses fingerpainting to create exuberant portraits of dogs. Growing up in Southern California, Jeff was first introduced to fingerpainting in kindergarten. He painted through high school and college and won several art awards, including Best of Show in a city wide student competition. After graduating with a degree in journalism and advertising, he went to work as an art director. For the next 40 years, he created print, radio and television ads for a number of top agencies. "After retiring in 2019, the clouds of stress and pressure cleared and allowed me to set my creative energy free," says Jeff. He began developing new techniques focused on the excitement and energy of painting. Today, he uses a variety of methods and tools, including fingerpainting wearing nitrile gloves, traditional paint brushes, bamboo shish kebab sticks, kite string, spraypaint and splattering. While working, Jeff always listens to music, including Broadway musicals, dance music and rhythmic Hawaiian tunes.

Words that describe this painting: beagle, dog, pet, impressionism, Iris Scott...

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"Path Beside the Lake" captures the feeling of a crisp, breezy Autumn afternoon on a path around a lake. The near trees have a few golden leaves clinging to ...

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Artist Ryan Pickart layers art historical references in this sensual nude. The painting tells the Greek myth of Alcmene and Galant...

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Part of Naoko's signature series, Who Are These Angels. A diaphanous angel stands quietly in a deep blue landscape. The tonal quality of the painting accentua...