Laura Clarke Hawkins

New Watercolors

2011-09-12T18:39:00.000-07:00

I haven't updated this blog for quite a while, but here are a few watercolors I've done lately. Ignore the poor quality photos :)

Newport Beach Temple, California

Spanish Fork, Utah

Collages

2009-10-04T22:07:00.000-07:00

The salt and pepper shakers are a dead give away that my current "studio" is my kitchen table.

The last few weeks I've been adding collage elements to my little watercolor paintings of our California neigborhood. Most of the collage paper is from yellowing, old books I bought from the Huntington Beach library. My husband is still mad at me for cutting up an awesome book from decades ago about caring for pet monsters. The illustrations are awesome.

Neighborhood Studies

2009-08-23T22:23:00.000-07:00

I don't have space to paint on large panels anymore, so I've mostly been making small watercolor paintings. I've been working on a series of simple scenes from my California neighborhood. They have been quick, fun paintings that will hopefully evolve into a more substantial exploration of my surroundings.

It's About Time

2009-07-11T21:24:00.000-07:00

Watercolors were once my forte, but then I got going with acrylics and oils and I haven't painted with watercolors for nearly three years. This past week I finally dove back into it. What a great feeling. I took off the lid of my palette and immediately smelled that old familiar smell of the paints. I never liked the smell before, but now it's a welcome scent! My palette was still covered in the mixed colors of my last watercolor project from 2006. How glad I was that I hadn't washed it off. Now I feel like I can mix back into those colors and start right where I left off, with the same remnants of yellow ochre and pthalo blue that I left years ago.

It's been a wonderful week of painting, painting for at least an hour a day, with Brynlee either by my side or napping. I've got to keep this routine up. I had forgotten my love of watercolors and the rush that comes from painting with them!

Pictures to come!

2009-04-29T20:06:00.000-07:00

Since the birth of my little Brynlee Babe I obviously haven't had as much time to paint, but I've gotten into my routine with the baby and I'm finally getting back into my art. I sold two paintings last week and I have a few paintings just getting started. Pictures will be posted as the new paintings get completed. Wish me luck. I'm feeling a little rusty even though it's only been a few months!

Art on Display

2009-01-16T10:05:00.000-08:00

Twelve paintings from my BFA Final Exhibit are now on display at

Maestro's Gelato Cafe

22 W. Center Street in Provo, UT

They will be up for the next five weeks. Stop by if you're interested in looking at the art, or if you're interested in some really good gelato ice cream! All twelve paintings are for sale. Contact me if you have any questions.

Final Paintings from my BFA Show (1st Half)

2008-11-06T19:53:00.001-08:00

Summer Scene, 48" x 48"

Stage One, 32" x 36"

Roman Descent, 18" x 24"

Olive Eye, 20" x 24"

Midnight Covering, 32" x 36"

Internal Movement, 18" x 24"

Hit the Birdie, 48" x 48" SOLD

Hide and Seek, 18" x 24"

Fowl Scene, 18" x 24"

Draped, 18" x 24"

Final Paintings from my BFA Show (2nd Half)

2008-11-06T19:40:00.003-08:00

Hearts Together, 9" x 12"

Hidden Thistle, 9" x 12"

Hearts Apart, 9" x 12"

Blue and Gold, 9" x 12"

Blonde Stalks, 9" x 12"

Dive, 18" x 24"

Familiar Surroundings I, 9" x 12"

Familiar Surroundings II, 9" x 12"

Familiar Surroundings III, 9" x 12"

Blue Poles, 20" x 24" SOLD

Kitchen View, 40" x 36" SOLD

BFA Show

2008-11-06T19:22:00.000-08:00

My BFA Final Exhibit was on display during the last two weeks of October and it went really well. It was exciting to see all my paintings hung on clean walls and lit with the nice gallery lighting! I was used to seeing the paintings stacked up in my messy studio space. There were 21 paintings in the show, ranging from 9 x 12 inches to 48 x 48 inches. Three paintings were sold, which was also a nice bonus! Here are a few pictures from the exhibit....

BFA Show

2008-09-29T19:26:00.000-07:00

My final show is in less than 3 weeks! I'm not completely finished yet, but I'm getting close. Here's a sneak preview of one of my finished pieces. I started this painting months ago, but it's finally done. The top picture is what it looked like a while ago and the bottom picture is the finished product. Hopefully you like the bottom picture better! I do. It's one of the 4 foot by 4 foot panels. Anyway, life will be really hectic for these final 2 and a half weeks. Yikes. I keep warning Josh that I'm nearing a breakdown. It could happen at any moment, but so far I've kept my sanity. Let's hope I can hold out for a few more weeks and then it will all be behind me and I'll be able to breathe.

*The show will run from the 17th to the 31st of October. The opening reception (which you are all welcome to attend) will be the Friday, October 17th from 7-9 pm in the Harris Fine Art Center, B.F. Larsen Gallery on the main floor.

Studio Time

2008-09-13T17:37:00.001-07:00

So, my final BFA show is in about a month. I'm freaking out a little bit. Yikes. I have a lot to do, but ll get it done. I spent several hours in the studio today and it went really well. I made some good progress on a painting I've been struggling with for months. I am loving my new larger studio space!!! I never bring my camera to the studio, but maybe sometime soon I can post some pictures of the new studio space and the paintings.

My final show will be up in the main gallery of the Harris Fine Arts Center on BYU from October 17 through October 31. The opening reception will be Friday, October 17th from 7-9 pm. Mark your calenders!

Great Salt Lake Series

2008-06-25T21:02:00.000-07:00

So, I have been really horrible and I haven't made any art for two months. It's killing me. Things have been pretty hectic lately. Now, my husband is away for the summer, spring term is over, and I've got lots of time to paint. I'll be heading into my studio tomorrow morning and hopefully I won't be too rusty. I've been thinking a lot about my art and I think I want to simply my work a little bit. I've been looking over a series I did this past year, referencing the Great Salt Lake. The paintings had many layers, but the end product was relaly simple. My current work needs some of that open space. With a lot of my current peices there's just no place to rest your eyes (see my post below from 4/19). So, with these Great Salt Lake pieces in mind, I'll see what happens in the studio tomorrow!

Wairere Falls Series

2008-04-29T10:45:00.000-07:00

I thought it might be interesting to post some of my past art, since I don't have anything new since my last big post of current art. The images that follow are part of a series I did in New Zealand a year and a half ago. They are mixed media: collage, acrylic, wax, and ink.

I learned quite a bit through this series. It became a springboard for the way that I work now. Unfortunately, all of the paintings but one remained in New Zealand to be sold. I kept the bottom one with the picnic tables.

84th Annual Spring Salon

2008-04-27T15:49:00.000-07:00

Earlier this month I entered the annual juried show at the Springville Museum of Art. I just found out that my painting was accepted. Yay! I entered a small watercolor piece title Behind Main. It's actually quite different from what I'm currently doing. I didn't have any of my current paintings ready for display, so I entered this piece that was framed and ready to go. It depicts an alley from downtown Salt Lake.

The Spring Salon opened today and will go through the first week of July. It's always a great exhibit and I'm sure this year will be no exception. I'm sure my Mother in Law will be pleased to hear that James Christensen will have two pieces in the show, as well. If my little watercolor isn't enough to pull you, his paintings will do the trick! (She is a dear friend of James Christensen's wife and a huge fan of his art!)

Here are a few of my favorite local artists and their artwork that is included in the exhibit:

Sunny Belliston -- Itapua II

Jared Ellis -- Onsite B66 #17

Jacqui Biggs Larsen -- Song of Small Things

Brian Kershisnik -- Madonna and Child with Saints Repairing Bicycle

Jennifer Rasmussen -- Dancing Gracefully in her Ruffled Paper Dress

My art, as of 4-19-08

2008-04-19T08:10:00.000-07:00

My studio space at BYU. Pretty chaotic, but sooo nice and convenient.

This one began as a painting about the wheat and the tares, but it turned into a painting about yellow lines.

This was my second attempt at the wheat and the tares, but it turned into a painting about green, blue, and violet rectangles. I had fun with that bright blue.

This one is larger than the other two. It's about 2.5 or 3 feet tall. All these paintings are acrylic paint on panels.

I wanted to do a painting about growth and decay, so I did this one. But I think it's more about form and color in the end.

This one is is 4 x 4 feet, and much heavier than I'd like it to be. (Thanks to Dad for building the panel with me!) I actually painted this painting the other way around, with the green at the top, then I saw it upside down and liked it better that way. This one's not done. I need to change something, but I haven't decided what.

This is the most recent painting, finished yesterday. It's about 3.5 feet tall. I wanted a big linear form of a seed or lima bean and that big blue shape is what I ended up with.

Woohoo for the new art blog!

2008-04-02T17:37:00.001-07:00

The plan here is to update this blog with images of my art and other art that inspiring me. We'll see how it goes!