Recent Works by Liz Osborne
July 7-28, 2023
Recent Works by Liz Osborne
Opening reception: Friday, July 7, 5:00-9:00 PM
Gallery hours: Monday-Friday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Artist Statement:
My work is a combination of layering acrylic paint with a variety of mediums, ranging from textiles to glitter. I love seeing the texture build as I add to each layer with molding gel, glass beads, a variety of paints, inks, gouache, and pastels. Each layer acts like an onion, with their own properties, stories and vibrations. I enlisted in the Navy at the age of 20, then spent the next 10 years stationed in Norfolk, Virginia serving on a variety of Naval ships and base commands. The noxious environment took a gigantic toll on my mental health. I found painting for the first time when I needed an a healthy way to recover and find a safe space for myself.
Highly abstract, my work focuses on channeling unseen emotions. Each piece has an aura of its own as my passion shines through with uninhibited energy and passionate brushstrokes. My pieces often start with a pleasant effect and then turn more despondent. I often paint with no plan in mind, if I’m feeling euphoric, you’ll know by my energetic and wild brushstrokes and the colors exuding off the canvas. Or, if I’m feeling melancholic, you’ll see darker tones and a brooding effect. My biggest muse and motivation for my work comes from my children. They’ve instilled a childlike energy into me that’s full of colors, wildness, and imagination. We often paint side by side where they learn from me and I also learn from them. I’m uniquely free in what I do and cannot be contained in one box or category.
Bio:
Liz Osborne is an abstract painter based in Knoxville, Tennessee. Her practice involves layering acrylic paint with a variety of mediums, ranging from textiles to foliage and glitter. Channeling her two biggest muses, her daughters, Liz’s pieces exude playful vibrations and uncontrollable energy. Liz’s time in the US Navy also made a significant impact on her art. Times of purgatory stressed angst and nervousness that drips off of Liz’s canvases.
Liz Osborne was born in Detroit, Michigan. When she graduated high school she moved to Hawaii where her stepmother was stationed in the Army. Being introduced to a new culture made Liz curious for more, she enlisted in the United States Navy. Shortly after boot camp, Liz was stationed in Norfolk, VA. After 10 years of military service, the sacrifices of being away from her daughters led to her voluntary separation from the Navy.
Shortly after, Liz found her love of painting. She found a way to express the uncomfortable, the vile and the despondency from her own thoughts and point of view.
She now attends the University of Tennessee College of Art in Knoxville where she is earning her Bachelor of Fine Arts.
https://www.lizosborneart.com
Instagram @lizosborneart