Hello! My name is Lawly, and I am pleased to invite you to join me for a creative brainstorming session this coming Sunday, May 4th, at Superhero Fitness. What are we brainstorming about? Well, let me just tell you! I’ve been asked to paint a mural on the big wall in the back room where all the acro jams happen. I’m honored to have the opportunity to share my art in this way. So far, I have not settled on an idea for the mural. I’m eager to hear ideas from anyone and everyone who visits the space. This mural will be the background for many exciting acro moments and cherished photos for years to come. It’s important to me that the folks using the gym are stoked about their backdrop! At this event, check out my concept sketches, weigh in about which ones you like, or shout out completely new ideas for what you’d like to see painted on the wall. Bring your friends, too!
A little about me as an artist:
It all started in a library in Cincinnati Ohio, possibly in 1994. I walked up to the tall library counter, reached way up and grabbed a stubby pencil and a little post-it sized slip of paper, and on the paper I drew a balloon. Then I drew a slightly disgruntled looking ghost. These were my first ever drawings that actually resembled something recognizable. From that point on, I drew a lot. As a homeschooled kid, I had a lot of time on my hands. With a graphic designer, multi-talented crafter mom, there were a lot of art and craft supplies laying around the house. I made sure no art supplies went untested.
During high school I got deeply into realism. I drew portraits with graphite and colored pencil. Back then, making drawings that people would mistake for photographs was a fun mission of mine. After highschool I furthered my growth as an artist by attending workshops by artists I admired. A memorable event in my young life was taking a trip to Michigan to attend a workshop put on by Ann Kulburg, an accomplished colored pencil portraitist who has published many instructional books. She also produces a monthly colored pencil magazine, as well as books that showcase amazing colored pencil work from artists around the globe. I had the great honor of being featured in two of her publications!
At 23 I moved to Portland with no plan whatsoever besides making more art and enjoying the beautiful Pacific Northwest. During this time period, my interest shifted more towards painting. I created comic strips with watercolor, made many acrylic paintings, some small enough to hang in the living room of a dollhouse, and eventually learned oil painting from an amazing painter named Alexander Rokoff. I feel that his teachings about how to understand light and shadow had a hugely positive impact on my artistic skills, and I still make use of his lessons even today as I paint with acrylics on walls.
Over time, I’ve gravitated more towards fantasy art. I’ve moved somewhat away from depicting people, and started creating beautiful environments for people to exist in. I think that as a child and teenager, when the materials available to me were mostly paper and canvas, I enjoyed drawing characters as a way of exploring who I wanted to be. At this stage of my life, I have more access to large surfaces to modify, like whole walls, floors, and rooms. I feel excited by being the main character in my own story, and creating beautiful, magical, inspiring habitats in which myself and others can live our stories. Lately I’ve been creating mosaic art installations and painting interior murals, mostly with fantasy nature themes.
During this era of my art creation, what inspires me most is designing rooms and atmospheres that transport the experiencer out of their normal life and into a colorful, magical realm. I enjoy painting whole-room murals that are intriguing, surprising, and maybe even whimsically disorienting- kind of like a confusing yet pleasant dream. I wrote a song called “why would you be doing boring things if you could do incredible things”, and you’ve probably never heard it because I mostly only sing it to myself while making art. My hope is that when people stumble upon my experiential, whole-room art pieces, they get the feeling that despite the predictability and monotony that is often present in everyday life, there are still magical, enlivening experiences waiting around some corners.
It’s such a privilege to be invited to paint the wall at superhero fitness. This community of acro-ers and movers is so dear to my heart, and I’m excited to provide everyone with a wondrous backdrop for their movement practices. I hope to see you at my mural chat on Sunday, May 4th at 5pm so we can dream up something incredible together!
If you’d like to see my art, check out my facebook art page here:https://www.facebook.com/lauraleonardart
