CartaBella

l'Artista Blog

Bonnie L. Porter, Artist

CARTABELLA:  Beautiful Papers

it began in the gardenIt all started in the Garden.

A week in Tuscany inspired me to sketch, en plein air, in a lush Italian Garden and open up my adult son’s childhood paint box. Ever since then I have continued playing around with paint and paper, responding to the glory of God in His creation. My palette continues to be the colors of the garden.

Working predominately in watermedia, I also express my creativity via art journaling and writing. An ongoing project is a sketchbook series of fruit, pots, vases, and flowers painted on rough French handmade paper in a spontaneous, Alla Prima style.

Painting sessions with some of the best art teachers in the world informs my personal painting style–illustrated books of Master Artists and Stampington & Co. magazines propped open on my studio table.

Drawing on my experiences of living over a decade in Europe, I am most fluent in the language of color. The varied dynamics of my walk with God spill over into my studio hours–expressed in a French Cobalt Blue period, or an Italian Terre Verte green season or experiments with English Rose Madder.

Teaching art in my home studio fuels inspiration for personal painting ventures.  Since I’ve been cacooning more than teaching or traveling, I am currently finding inspiration in Home and Garden themes. Preparing for Summer Art Camps, I intentionally find ways to connect American Girl Dolls with the works of Carl Larsson, Monet, Mary Cassat, and so on.

ALL ART IS ROOTED IN LIFE AND IT ALL STARTED IN THE GARDEN!