clara lieu fine art.

i recently purchased one of clara lieu's "haunting" figure drawings in what she describes as "moody dark fine art crayon"...

i was attempting, over the weekend, to put into words, why i was drawn to this particular artist, her work, and the particular piece that i chose, but art is, well, so subjective, right? it's individual, it's personal, and it's an evaluation that only you, or i, can do, and then come to the realization that you are drawn to a particular piece of art.

but that's a good thing, that's why so many unique and transformative artists are supported by a wide variety of individual and independent evaluators of those artists and their art.

i first was drawn to the rather extreme movement of the figure, the ways in which clara suggests emotion or feeling or just pure movement that encompasses all of that. i was next drawn to the stark contrast of dark marks on a light surface. that alone is stunning. and third, i was drawn to the subject matter, that it's figurative. and thinking back to some of my biggest challenges when i was a fine arts major, (and yes, i once was)...the figure was my most difficult subject. but i did eventually "get it". i'm not sure if i mastered it, but there is a light bulb that tends to go off when you are working so honestly at getting something...not exactly right, or perfect, but close. and i got close. that's your "aha" moment as an artist. i think anyway. clara teaches at the rhode island school of design so i'm sure she is witness to many a students' "aha" moments.

as well as loving clara's work, i was surprised to find i could purchase her original artwork (not a print!) at a VERY reasonable price. clara keeps her work accessible, to the every day independent, appreciative evaluators like me. find more of clara's work here, and read more about clara here. and enjoy!