Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Featured Artist: Margaret Farrell Bruno


A little late, and my apologies... is a look at the life and art of one of the GJWP, Peggy Bruno.  Aside from just having her first grandchild, Peggy has a lot of star-power behind her.  She is a past President of the North River Arts Society, and is a member of 3 prestigious pastel societies, which you can read about HERE. 



Here's what Peggy had to say about her journey

1.       Describe your personal Art Journey-
Even as a very young child, I always had pencil and paper in hand. The summer of my senior year in high school, I was given the opportunity to apprentice under a local professional Scituate artist. Every day, I would ride my bicycle to the Minot Beach area to her studio and also once a week we would be joined by this wonderful group of professional artists. We would work in plein air and from models using pastels and oils. What an incredible learning opportunity that was. From there, I headed to NYC to attend and graduate from Pratt Institute, a professional Fine Art and Architectural school. I launched a three-pronged career as a fine artist, portraitist, and illustrator. My love of the ocean, light, atmosphere and South Shore brought me back to the area and is a tremendous influence in my work.


2.   What brings you the most joy while painting?
Honestly, the whole process of painting gives me so much joy. You start with this idea, whether it be in the form of the landscape or portrait presented before you or a conceptual idea you are challenging yourself with and you work out the design and/or sketches and then you jump into the heart of the painting. It is both frightening and exhilarating. I guess you could compare it to a roller coaster ride. If you make it to the end without being flung out of the car, its so much fun. And of course you want to run and get back in line again.

3.What is different (and special) about your art?
There are often times that Im looking for challenges when I paint. Ways to possibly present a scene or idea using a different approach. I try to emphasize that aha moment that made me want to paint a particular scene or portrait. This can be achieved in two manners, boldly and deliberately or softly and subtly. Choosing this bold or subtle path many times defines the piece and offers that special quality. 


4. Describe your inspiration (muse)
In describing my personal inspiration I have to simply present my Artists statement, I am continually humbled and honored with the beauty of color and light whether it be on the soft face of a precious child or on a majestic landscape before me. I hope to always consider it a privilege, a blessing and a challenge to be inspired by that beauty.
As far as artists who have been an influence, there are so many, both contemporary and historically. A few historical artists that come to mind and are also an influence to many are Sargent, Sorolla, Zorn, with their masterful handling of brushstrokes, color, line and the figure itself and also Edgar Paynes landscapes with his glorious use of broken color and perfect values. A few contemporary artists I admire are Harvey Dinnerstein, Burton Silverman and Daniel Greene. There are so many talented artists nowadays it is hard to name only a few.


5. Any personal statement/life motto/ favorite quote?
There is one quote I recently read that Ill mention since I have already defined my Artists statement. I am currently reading Andrew Wyeths biography A Secret Life by Richard Meryman. A very interesting book, but I was enthralled when the author quoted Wyeth as saying, People are a marvelous mystery to me. I often see them in color; some are ruddy and some are silver gray. Theyre moods in themselves. To me everyone is as important as everyone else; everything is as important as everything else. In some way a tree is just as important as a person, in its own life.
The last two lines, especially, spoke to both the human rights activist and the conservationist in me. We need more compassion, kindness and generosity for our fellow humans and we are losing a battle to save our landscapes and wildlife that serve as the subject matter in many of our paintings. Hopefully an artists works will still reflect our surroundings in our future and not be a reminder of what once was.



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