Oil Painting Of Nature Biography
(Source google.com)
Blessed with parents who loved art and encouraged artists, Harlan's early years
were spent in the frequent company of artists. Her father shared his deep love
and respect for Nature during frequent long walks, bicycle rides, gardening and
making wine. Harlan's artistic talents were encouraged from childhood. Every
year included some form of art instruction covering a vast array of media:
ceramics, encaustic painting, collage, graphics, acrylic painting, weaving,
watercolors, basket weaving, and metal smithing. She excelled easily in
whatever media she chose to use. While having enjoy formal art training, Harlan
is a self-taught oil painter. Oil painting is her preferred medium: "its
like an extension of my mind". She devoted a great deal of time to
learning the science behind the medium to understand how and why oil paintings
are constructed as they are. Her paintings are not only beautiful but are
painted with integrity. Harlan has
several one woman shows in the greater Detroit
area during the early and mid 1980s. Her pen and ink drawing of a fish was the
cover for the Great Detroit Aquarium Society's magazine for many years. She
served as Vice-president for one year and President for three years for the
Fenton Artist Guild. It was necessary for the guild to alter the by-laws to
allow her to remain president for the third year. In 1986 Harlan married and became less
artistically active after the birth of her son in 1990, turning her creativity
to smaller projects that would easily conform to the demands of raising a
toddler. Since 1995 she has returned to her easel with a renewed energy and
purpose. "Art patrons deserve to have a work of art that will last far longer
than they will. I consider it almost contemptuous of some modern artists who
give no real consideration to the durability of their work." As someone who has been near-sighted nearly all my life I have learned that I see very differently than my far-sighted husband. He can look at a scenic view and take it all in at once while my eye tends to focus on details within the whole. Our perception of the world around us varies so greatly. As an artist I have the opportunity to share my view, to draw attention to the amazing beauties of the natural world which are all too often just overlooked for sake of the big picture." Harlan's paintings beckon us into that miniature world to share a delight for color, light and shadow and marvel at the beauty of Nature. Her paintings are life like without resorting to photorealism.
Nature has always been a reoccurring theme throughout
Harlan's professional career which has included portraits, abstracts, fantasy
and conceptual work. As a strong believer that a painting must speak for itself
without an explanation from the artist, Harlan now devotes her talents to large
"portraits" of small landscapes. "Humans tend to presume that we
all perceive the world in a similar manner. As someone who has been
near-sighted nearly all my life I have learned that I see very differently than
my far-sighted husband. He can look at a scenic view and take it all in at once
while my eye tends to focus on details within the whole. Our perception of the
world around us varies so greatly. As an artist I have the opportunity to share
my view, to draw attention to the amazing beauties of the natural world which
are all too often just overlooked for sake of the big picture." Harlan's
paintings beckon us into that miniature world to share a delight for color,
light and shadow and marvel at the beauty of Nature. Her paintings are life
like without resorting to photorealism. "I prefer to think of my work as
‘Focused Impressionism'. I'm not just copying a photo on a grand scale, not
that doing so isn't quite an artistic endeavor, it just isn't my particular
purpose. There is a lot of "me" in every painting. I may exaggerate a
color to share the emotional impact that color had on me. I may remove elements
that exist in the photograph that distract from the composition. I work from
photos because it is simply impractical for me to try and do my work ‘plein
air'. I'm fortunate to be able to "freeze" my subject with the use of
a camera."
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