Color is the most evocative tool in Anita Loomis's bag of tricks. She loves color and is not subtle about applying it.

"Color has a life of its own.  It seems like alchemy to me, the way light hits and activates a color; that color is then perceived by our eye and subsequently sets off psycho-emotional responses in our brains. It’s like magic," says Loomis.

In painting, an infinite combination of colors to manipulate and study can easily take a lifetime to explore. That is what most attracts and challenges her creative process. 

"I include symbolism in many of my paintings because it adds layers of meaning that are discoverable over time," explains Loomis. "There is a long history of symbolism in art, which makes me question. What was the artist’s intended meaning for these symbols? How did society shape that meaning in their era? How do the symbols relate to the rest of the piece? As the viewer, what meaning do I assign to the symbols I’ve picked up on?"

These symbols and marks can imbue a painting with a presence that can change over time despite the artwork’s unchangeable physical condition. The image may be static, but the meaning is not.  

"It’s like a movie you watch over and over again. Each time you watch a well-made film, you can pick up on different inclusions that shift the overall meaning. And depending on where someone is in their life, interpretations can change in personal ways. This gives symbols a unique superpower: a chance for the viewer to make the painting uniquely theirs." 

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30x60

Oil on Canvas

$2900

"I’m an artist with a deep appreciation for art history, culture, science, and biology, so a confluence of thought rides through my brain while my hands grab tools and reach for paint," says Loomis. "I am usually just as surprised as anyone to see what emerges. However, for every painting, there is almost always a spark of an idea that makes it into one of my sketchbooks, then at some point, that sketch becomes the seed of a new painting."

Loomis paints couples because it’s human nature to have someone significant in our lives—a trusted someone with whom we can be ourselves, warts and all. 

"These can be the most wonderful and challenging relationships to navigate," she shares. "While painting them, I have my relationships in mind and others I’ve observed, and the paintings look to honor those connections in a heartfelt, sometimes playful way."

Her landscapes are less about any observable place.

"They are about the essence of humanity’s interaction with this land that we explore, observe, harvest food from, build shelter on, and walk on during our lifetime," Loomis says. "I wonder who or what has been on this land before me and what will be here long after I’m gone. In a way, it's about the legacy of our presence."