Artist Focus | Jan Ironside

I've been struggling creatively for basically this entire semester. I'm in an intermediate painting class this spring, and I took it because I realized I had a deep passion for abstract painting after taking this professor's introduction to painting class. The class requires you to find your "niche", so to speak, in painting, and paint a few works based around this "theme". I put a lot of time, energy, and tears into trying to find references that truly spoke to me, only to come up with nothing each time I thought I found something.

I stumbled across one of Jan Ironside's oil paintings while I was scrolling through tumblr. I was immediately captivated by the intensity of colors she used and her impasto technique. Her subject matter also drew me in: flowers. I always loved drawing flowers, but painting them was never a strength of mine. They're so soft and delicate, and my paintings are usually loud and chaotic.

 

I love how the flowers seem to leap off the page. Something so dainty and fragile is now incredibly textured and in your face. You can purchase her paintings from her Etsy Shop and I highly suggest you snag some of these up! She's incredibly talented and deserves recognition for her beautiful works of art.

She's the inspiration behind the pieces I'm currently working on for my painting class. I'll share them on the blog once they're completed! 

Who are some of your favorite artists?