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Landscapes of the Mind
Aleta Pippin's bold and beautiful oil
paintings take her on an inner journey of discovery.
by Emily Van Cleeve
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Reprinted from FOCUS/New Mexico, June/July
2006 |
The Secret Garden, oil on canvas, 32"x48", Collection of Roberts
Markel, P.C. |
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The vivid hues in Aleta Pippin's dynamic oil paintings on canvas flirt and play
with each other to create a remarkable dance that thoroughly engages the viewer.
These stunning works reveal her enormous zest for life and incredible passion
for color.
Always in the process of searching for her true self, Pippin isn't afraid to
make artistic changes that reflect personal growth and development. Recently,
she decided to make a shift in her work away from making the successful poured
acrylic paintings that have been purchased by collectors around the world to
creating oil paintings using a palette knife. The move was bold, but in her
heart, it was the right thing to do.
"I wanted to interact more directly with the canvas," she explains. "I like the
quality of the stroke I get with a palette knife. With it, I can apply layer
upon layer of translucent oils."
Pippin's creative juices come from an open mind and an intuititve place deep in
her soul that delights in sharing healing energy with others. All she has to do
to begin the artistic process is open a tube of paint and apply color to the
canvas. Red, which represents passion, life, growth, renewal, prosperity and
joy, is Pippin's favorite color. It almost always appears somewhere in a
painting to infuse power and strength into the abstract imagery.
"Colors are all about an emotional impact on the viewer, and from the feedback I
get from collectors, I've been able to communicate the joy and optimism I feel,"
Pippin says.
Lately, fascinating organic forms have been emerging out of her fields of color.
Sometimes, flowers and plants seem to appear although Pippin doesn't try to
paint anything in particular. If a viewer recignizes a form, it's purely a
delightful accident.
"The painting creates itself," she explains. "If I decide to add flowers, it
won't work. My role is to push colors around and see where they want to go."
Painting titles, such as The Secret Garden, Path to Freedom and
Moments of Genius, reveal themselves to her after works are ocmpleted.
The magnificent Southwestern landscape is a major source of inspiration for
Pippin, who has been a resident of Santa Fe for the past 15 years. Her response
to the magical starknss of this high desert environment is to use a high-key
color palette that expresses positive emotional energy.
"My personality is always to push and challenge myself," she says. "Sometimes
it's uncomfortable to keep shaking things up. But I'm committed to exploring new
images and allowing the greater part of me to direct the creative process."
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Moments of Genius
oil on canvas
48" x 30"
Collection of Stephanie and Rob Foster |
Path to Freedom
oil on canvas
16" x 20"
Collection of Wendy Jacobs
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