Women in Art 278 Magazine April 2018 | Page 14

a m e rican artist Dena Nord A bstract Painting ABOUT THE ARTIST: I am on a quest to communicate through abstract paintings. I am fascinated by what this medium can do and where it takes me. I aim to create alluring paintings that are approachable and that bring joy to both me and the others who view them. Joy is necessary. My goal is to create works people view and feel a sense of balance, delight, and thrill. I want people to invite my work into their spaces, whether their home or for public view in the community through murals and cherish how my art lights up its surroundings. My process is surprise-based, exploratory, and often ordered in surprise, restructure, explore, and resolve – then repeat as needed. I use organic shapes and linework to take the viewer on an unexpected path of meditation. My inspirations and subject matter reveal themselves to me throughout the day and I enjoy making direct responses to my earlier works as they continue to intrigue and guide me. My recent work has focused on how my paintings can be experienced in non- traditional ways to reach a broader audience. I have explored sharing through video, sound, augmented reality, and public surfaces to communicate my artistic voice, process, and work. These additional outlets, other than on a canvas in a gallery setting, have provided me an opportunity to become a gateway artist for many first-time art buyers that feel a connection to my art and want to invite abstract art into their lives, which I find deeply special and rewarding. Reptar Acrylic on Canvas 30” x 40” Reptar was one of the first paintings I created in the painting to music series. It’s name comes from the band, Reptar, that inspired the work. ART pag e 14 Future People Acrylic and Oil on Canvas 36″ x 24″ $1400 Inspired by the song “Future People” by Alabama Shakes, this piece was created with a time-lapse process video that was painted to the beat of the song. The brush strokes in the video line up exactly to the beats per minute of the song. The accompanying video dances with sound as you watch the piece being created. This is all tied together by the power of augmented reality, which allows you to watch this video right on top of the actual piece when using an app.