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Welcome to Paintings
& Portraits of Color
Original Artwork by Crystal
Pittman
About the
Artist
I
remember as a little girl drawing portraits of
my siblings and cartoons from the Sunday comic strips. I am completely in
my comfort zone when I am creating art. . Over the years my
artwork was accumulating on my walls for only my eyes to
see, but encouraged by my sister to attend
an outdoor art festival in 2004 where she introduced
me to an artist who inspired and edified me about vending art
outdoors. I started to vending at community art festivals the
following summer.
Techniques &
Materials:
The "academic approach" I once
took when painting a portrait has evolved over the years into
a more personal approach in regards to my application of paint
and my choice of colors. An artist becomes free to paint
in their unique styles my being with lots of texture,
intermingling of vibrant colors that dance happily on the
canvas in a way that expresses my inner spirit and feelings
about the subject. Most often, whatever I am going to paint
will begin as a sketch on my drawing pad before it goes onto
the working surface where the final drawing
is rendered slightly or completely different from the
initial sketch. My palette is by no means
limited-consisting of multiple reds, yellows, blues, greens, browns,
including black and white. Before I begin, I ask God to
bless it and to open my inner sight, and then I submit to the
creative powers! Dipping my palette knife or brush into two or
more colors at a time, in an almost random fashion, I start to place
dark and light colors strategically to create form. Generally,
I pose in the mirror for the figurative imagery in my paintings,
which are often based on a personal experience of mine, such as in
"Wash Day I and II". Portraits are more technical, but
to keep my creativity alive in portraiture work, I work only
from black & white photos and rely on my own color choices
to capture the person's essence. My favorit painting
mediums are acrylics and oils that have been mixed with
coldwax. I also paint sometimes with beeswax (encaustic
painting) & I have tried oil pastels. Paintings
& Portraits of Color is the bes way to describe my overall
work.
Inspiration &
Influences:
I admire and study the work of
diverse artists from around the world (past and present), and I am
certain, in some way, more than a few have had some influence on
me.Whenever I see face or scenery that touches my "art nerve," it
becomes my goal to re-create an image that captures the essence,
spirit, and energy of what I saw or personally
experienced. Autumn Passion, Somewhere &
Sinews are my interpretations of the beauty I see in nature,
as I remembered it, after a walk in the park.
Mother of Zion, Coffee Bean Café, Walking with
Seagulls, Wash Day, Fruit Stand, Branches, are all imagery
composed and inspired from my personal memories of motherhood,
friendships, and travels to Africa and Jamaica.
In 2007 I started to explore clay as a
possible surface to for my paintings. (see the link to my journey in clay). I now consider myself
a painter and ceramist. Since I was been bitten by the
clay goddess I've been on an addicting and exciting journey in
clay. I employ hand-building, sculpture and wheel
techniques in my pieces. The clay provides me with an
alternative to canvas, which I continue to explore and embellish
sometimes with drawings from my sketchbook. There is something so
immensely calming to my spirit when I work with clay; molding and
kneading it into a finished piece of work.The first
ceramic piece I created is called Golden
Memories, which was all hand-built and sculpted . It
was the first in a series of small windows, each showing a
personal experience I remember from my childhood growing up in the
Marcy Projects of Brooklyn,
NY.
I
believe and hope that my artistic style is captured in any
medium I choose to use, and that the universal content that
inspires me will invite a diverse audience to make an
immediate and personal connection to my work. Since stepping out on faith, my work has
started to leave my apartment walls and abide on the walls
of art lovers and collectors - some of my
patrons include:
-
Alonzo Mourning, Miami Heat
-
Dr. Maime Locke - VA State Senator
-
Dawn Jackson,
President of Women Business Owners (WBO) in Prince Georges
County, MD
-
Maria
Thomas, D J/Hostess - "Talk To Me" 93.5 FM
WRTN
"There is art in
everything; it just depends on how you see things - (eyes opened or
closed)"
www.CPittmanArt.com
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For more information please contact by
email:
Crystal@cpittmanArt.com
Phone:
Studio 240.476.6155
Fax & Voice Mail
419.735.0112
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