The Artist in her studio
The Internet is a magical place at times. I enjoy connecting with people online and thoroughly enjoy the positive social networking side of the Internet. I love Instagram and sharing images. I had the pleasure of connecting with an artist recently who's gift's I would like to share with you.
It was this image that I shared which sparked some inspiration for Tara.
She transformed this 1950's Dior model into the ultimate shoe maven Sarah Jessica Parker and surrounded her with various SJP Collection Styles
Tara Says, "My love for art began at a young age. I started to draw everything in sight around the age of 8 and my obsession continued through adulthood. I ended up pursuing an art studio degree and graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelors of Fine Arts degree with my focuses being in drawing and ceramics. I have always worked in 2D and 3D, loving different qualities about both. It has always been a struggle trying to keep art a priority alongside being a wife and mother, and with different seasons I have focused on different mediums with varying degrees of time commitments.
Since graduating about 15 years ago, I have done everything from murals, to pottery shows, to custom work. After raising my 4 boys and keeping my art career more on the side lines and being a mother in the forefront, I decided in 2014 that it was time to let art take more of a priority in my life than in past years. This meant deciding to look at it more like a job and committing to work every day creating in my studio and searching for my personal voice as an artist. It has been an exciting year for me, because even though I have created my whole life, I feel as though this year I have become an "emerging artist" in my own sense of the word.
I looked within and searched within myself for the things that were always there. I looked to inspirational artists, Bo Bartlett, Frida Kahlo, Alphonse Mucha, and Gustav Klimt, to name a few. I have always been inclined to draw people and love capturing a feeling, mood, or characteristic about a person. Telling people's stories through portraiture is my passion. Nothing excites me/ terrifies me more than creating someones likeness, and if I can capture something more about the person I am painting or make them feel beautiful through my work then its even better. I have always been kind of a dreamer and my work tends to have a strain of fantasy in it. Fabric and pattern have also been influential in my work, as have nature and everything vintage.
Self Portrait
As I searched for my voice, I also searched for the perfect medium. Drawing with pencil and painting with watercolor have been my mediums of choice, but I was frustrated at the size limit of a sheet of paper. I found the perfect mixed media for me which is working on canvas with fluid acrylics (which act as watercolor) combined with colored pencils. I feel like after finding this medium combination I have been able to develop my work and have some consistency which is so exciting. I'm looking forward to seeing my work continue to develop and to learn people's stories along the way!"
When the UPS delivery man knocked on my door on Friday imagine my surprise to receive the most AMAZING portrait from Tara.
She even gave me a peek at her process
I feel so honored that she used her time and talents to create this portrait for me. In the image I was in the Hearst Castle gardens of hydrangeas wearing a headdress from The House of Kat Swank. I love this moment and am truly thrilled it is now captured forever. The addition of the peacock feather is perfect for me too and I truly adore every element of this piece. It will proudly be displayed on my living rooms magenta accent wall.
Thank You Tara!
Commission your own unique piece for your home or as a gift from Tara!
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