FAR/NEAR: The Solace of Beautiful Places [Guest Post by Carole Garland]

FAR/NEAR is a landscape series of oil paintings, a departure from my previous shows of Los Angeles urbanscapes at TAG Gallery.

Carole Garland, The Oak Grove, Oil on canvas, 36 x 48" 

I thought it might be a bit lame to show landscape paintings, but I figured I already had a couple of good large paintings of the local Santa Monica Mountains, I have a history of painting on site en plein air at the local beaches and canyons, and why not?
 I've always loved the great outdoors. I find peace, tranquility and a sense of higher purpose in nature.

Carole Garland, The Receding Tide, Oil on canvas, 48 x 60"

After my visit to Patagonia in South America and my travels through Tierra del Fuego and the Chilean Fjords I figured I'd go even lamer and paint from my travels. The archipelago is breathtaking: small, remote islands spreading out forever off the coast of Chile, then glimpses of glaciers in the distance, mountains and stormy skies with endless changeable moods.

Carole Garland, Perito Moreno Glacier, Oil on canvas, 30 x 40"

The two paintings, Archipelago and Perito Moreno Glacier, were an attempt to recall the feelings of that place, the remoteness and isolation, and to explore the solace of empty places.

I started both paintings using rags rather than brushes. I rubbed thin layers of paint on the canvas with the idea of creating transparent layers of color, both seen and unseen.

Carole Garland, The Archipelago, Oil on canvas, 30 x 40"

Carole is having an Artist Reception on Saturday, November 7, 5-8pm
She will also be part of an Artists' Talk at TAG Saturday, November 14, 3pm.