Carole Garland

Point of View

2022

A moment in time - the bikini clad women are oblivious to their surroundings - lost in an e-book, sunk into a sandy slumber, placing a towel on a chair, checking her cell phone while...

Depicts Carole Garland reveling in a hot summer day at the Venice Beach. Colorful beach umbrellas shield the timid from the burning sun while sunbathers bask in the searing heat. Yellow and blue ribbons floating on the wind celebrate Venice’s chaos and its whimsy. To focus the figure of a preteen who stands sentinel, Garland fades out the foreground sunbather on right and obfuscates the crouching man on left. The artist leads us to the groups of mysterious standing and sitting figures in the shadows and beyond. Garland’s collection of figurative work speaks to a contemporary sensibility in her approach to painting, while expressing a curiosity about the human form and an irrepressible concern for the human spirit. Carole Garland graduated from Knox College, Galesburg, Ill., studied at the Chicago Art Institute and the University of the Americas in Mexico City. She has worked privately with artists Keith Finch and Ron Pekar, taken numerous workshops and was mentored by David Gallup...

Burning sun, waves lapping at the shore, the lingering scent of suntan lotion – it’’s an endless summer day at the beach. Carole Garland evokes the heat, wind and sand of a day along the Southern California coast. Swimmers and onlookers cool off in the Pacific waters waiting for the next surge or ripple. Carole Garland graduated from Knox College, Galesburg, Ill., and studied art at the Chicago Art Institute and the University of the Americas in Mexico City. She has worked privately with artists Keith Finch and Ron Pekar, taken numerous workshops and was mentored by fine artist David Gallup...

A bright colorful umbrella. And three reserved beachgoers who stare at fellow humans scantily dressed in bikinis and speedos. This was the inspiration for the painting. Perhaps not p...

“I begin this short essay with my artists’ statement from 1997 because it illustrates my focus on emotion instead of on subject matter starting early on. I approached the idea of writing about what I paint back then with dread and tried to bypass it by being as honest as possible about my process. I’d like to think that I paint anything I want because through paint I can express how I feel. I started training to be an artist in early childhood. I studied texture. I learned about composition. I played with color and observed the beauty of line. My methods were unconventional and invented by me. Many different things inspired me: Cheerios in milk, clouds, hands in food, dry dusty dirt, wet mud puddles, coloring books, fashion photos in the newspaper and my keen need to observe my surroundings. When asked what I wanted to be when I grew up I had no answer. I just wanted to watch, and to observe the world around me. I’ve worked for years on a response to that complicated question “what is the work about?” I’ve developed all kinds of stories that seem to make sense at the time, but I have to ask, “isn’t this the same question as ‘what do you want to be when you grow up?”’ I am drawn to the figure, and to capturing physical expression in all types of situations, but especially when we are on our own. The body carries emotion, and most people are unaware that they reveal something of themselves when observed in private moments. When I was young I realized that I could easily understand the unspoken just by watching. It felt like a strange and isolating gift – and sometimes a curse – and I often felt confused and acted out in anger when the words didn’t match what I saw. But I still recognize all kinds of emotion there, and whether what I see is true or not, I relish the vulnerability of the moment. Color is another important tool for me. It’s a self-taught endeavor and one that I explore daily. Color mixing is similar to building flavors in a soup. A soup with just salt is watery and uninteresting. As in cooking, I pay close attention from the first layers what each color feels like in terms of its value, whether it’s warm or cool, and how it fits the composition. I am looking for something that feels harmonious with my nervous system. I begin with abstract shapes, then ask, “Is this shape interesting? Does this color work next to that one? Is it too strong? Is it helpful to the overall composition?” The more complex the mix, the more likely it is to hold my attention, and allow me to linger. Those puddles of paint sitting on my six foot glass palette...

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