RUSSELL STRAND
IN THE ARTIST'S WORDS
Painting is the most important practice in my life. It is a form of work that is somehow the most meditative, the most chaotic, and also the most difficult. It is my battle for harmony, for peace, and for hope against dissonance, against doubt, and against hopelessness. As I study the light and shadow of my subjects, I have no choice but to face the light and shadow within. When I am painting, I have nothing to hide, and nothing to hide behind. I am in my most vulnerable state, yet my most confident.
I am fortunate that my desire to paint and the lessons I learn from the visual world have lifted me up from the deep, dark depths of depression and mania. As I focus on relationships between bodies of color, I am able to make discoveries about the interactions in my own life with clarity. I am able to face and eventually accept fear, trauma, and stress. Creating art is the way I move forward. By physically, emotionally, and subconsciously expressing where I am at a given time, I reflect on all that has shaped my world, both light and shadow, with gratitude.
ABOUT RUSSELL
Russell has experimented with visual art since early childhood and has created representational works on canvas for eight years. At an early age, his mother would take him to enjoy hours of observation in unusual industrial and natural sites. Living on Oregon's North Coast, he is inspired by interactions between the natural world and the built environment. He is informed by the wonderment of light as it plays upon rarely celebrated scenery. Painting, to Russell, can be a catalyst for unity. When he paints in public, he enjoys strengthening his connection to the landscape through conversation with friendly passers-by. He loves leading workshops in the community where differences and similarities in observation are shared, developed, and celebrated. As he discovers new subjects to paint, he is often reminded: Art is everywhere and it is for everyone.
Painting is the most important practice in my life. It is a form of work that is somehow the most meditative, the most chaotic, and also the most difficult. It is my battle for harmony, for peace, and for hope against dissonance, against doubt, and against hopelessness. As I study the light and shadow of my subjects, I have no choice but to face the light and shadow within. When I am painting, I have nothing to hide, and nothing to hide behind. I am in my most vulnerable state, yet my most confident.
I am fortunate that my desire to paint and the lessons I learn from the visual world have lifted me up from the deep, dark depths of depression and mania. As I focus on relationships between bodies of color, I am able to make discoveries about the interactions in my own life with clarity. I am able to face and eventually accept fear, trauma, and stress. Creating art is the way I move forward. By physically, emotionally, and subconsciously expressing where I am at a given time, I reflect on all that has shaped my world, both light and shadow, with gratitude.
ABOUT RUSSELL
Russell has experimented with visual art since early childhood and has created representational works on canvas for eight years. At an early age, his mother would take him to enjoy hours of observation in unusual industrial and natural sites. Living on Oregon's North Coast, he is inspired by interactions between the natural world and the built environment. He is informed by the wonderment of light as it plays upon rarely celebrated scenery. Painting, to Russell, can be a catalyst for unity. When he paints in public, he enjoys strengthening his connection to the landscape through conversation with friendly passers-by. He loves leading workshops in the community where differences and similarities in observation are shared, developed, and celebrated. As he discovers new subjects to paint, he is often reminded: Art is everywhere and it is for everyone.