DPW Spotlight Interview: Lynne French

Each week we will spotlight a different DPW artist who will give away one of their best paintings.

To enter to win Lynne's painting, "Rocky Mountains" go to Daily Paintworks and click on the link at the top of the page announcing their interview.

Tell us a bit about how you first started painting.

Some of my earliest memories at four or five years old are of hours spent painting and drawing with my Aunt, a professional artist.

Did you have any stops and starts in your painting career?

I have painted continuously throughout my life except for a break of a few years following the birth of my daughter.

Rocky Mountains
(click to view)

Enter to win by clicking on the link at the top of the DPW home page announcing Lynne's interview.

What mediums and genres have you experimented with?  

I have used almost all traditional mediums and have experimented most with watercolor on tissue paper.

Which ones have "stuck" and which ones have fallen away?

The use of watercolor on gessoed tissue paper has evolved into a technique based on an ancient Zen Buddhist meditation ritual, that I frequently use.

Provence Courtyard

(click to view)

Which ones are you looking forward to exploring?

I am intrigued by alcohol ink and egg tempera, and look forward to experimenting with them.

Who or what inspires you most?

I am most inspired by the early California impressionists, most specifically The Society of Six... August Gay and Seldon Gile, and by the varied California landscape itself.

Zen Inspired Poppies & Pansies Watercolor on Tissue
(click to view)

What does procrastination look like for you?

Procrastination is chaos for me.  :}

What techniques work to ensure that you make time for your art?

My income is derived from painting, so nothing more than necessity (and enjoyment) motivates me to find time to paint.

California Paso Robles Hills
(click to view)

How do you generally arrive at ideas for your paintings?

I take frequent road trips to paint different locations, and also am inspired by visits to museums,
art online, and in books.

How do you keep art "fresh?" What techniques have helped you avoid burnout and keep your work vibrant and engaging?

Landscape painting is endlessly engaging for me because it is ever changing, and the difference within of an hour painting outside can change the look of a scene immensely.

Hollyhock Cottage
(click to view)

What do you feel you are learning about right now as an artist?

To have fun with painting, and know that, to a great degree, the rule is there are no rules.  :}

What makes you happiest about your art?

It makes me very happy when people are pleased with my work, and it also makes me very happy that I have been fortunate enough to paint professionally for so long.

Thanks, Lynne!

© 2017 Sophie Marine