Claire Bigbee
Janis H. Sanders
Week Eight of Spring Arrivals
April 23 — April 29
The work of two Maine Art Hill artists arrive for Week Eight of Spring Arrivals. Below you will see a thumbnail of each piece. Click to make it larger. Works from these three artists are available online and at the main gallery at 14 Western Ave in Kennebunk. Come by or call 207-967-2803. Links to their artist’s pages, where you can see all their work are at the bottom.
APRIL 24 — Claire Bigbee
Capturing the beauty and power of the grand scenery of Maine on canvas is my inspiration. As a plein air painter, the infinite beauty of nature has always been my subject since moving to Maine when I was 12. Being alone with nature and observing the scenery is calming and gives me peace. Painting is a wordless expression when trying to represent what meets my eye looking at a view. An invisible presence surrounds me while observing the landscape in a field. I can feel that presence or spirit voice watching the wind swaying through the marsh grass on a brisk fall day.
The salt marsh sparrows swooped and dived in rhythm with the wind. It’s a real dance and a breathtaking experience to watch. Those magical moments when all the hustle and bustle in life disappears and what’s left is truly wonderful. In those quiet moments, I feel the creator orchestrating all the beauty surrounding me. As a co-creator of that beauty, I try to capture those moments in time and space. The dancing clouds and forever changing moods of the Maine skies. The fleeting light streaks across the beach or marshes and pastoral views. Those “wow” moments are when the landscape lights up and says look at me! It’s my first impression, my feelings from a view I aim to capture on canvas and make timeless.
APRIL 27 — Janis H. Sanders
“Why is it that looking at old photos, the older they are, the younger you look?” laughs Janis Sanders when discussing creating new work. “The relationship between painting and photography is tight—the more unique the artwork, the older the artist, and the more experience and skill we see come through in paint.”
There is nothing to lose when living in the moment. I am liberated to put my best self into the path and story told in each new painting. It is like a story of the written word expressed in paint, in two-dimensional and near three-dimensional forms.
Click the links below to see all these pieces and other work from these talented artists.