Monica Linville

Born: 1951, Schenectady, NY

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I have been a working Studio Artist for over 30 years. I am a self-taught painter, working professionally since 1977.

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Much of my adult life has been spent living close to nature; a mountain top in Puerto Rico’s rainforest and currently in the forests surrounding Boone, NC. My work remains infused with the colors, textures, and light of the natural environment.

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Over 20 of those years were spent in the Puerto Rican rain forest on top of a little mountain in the Caribbean where my studio was located. I  relocated to the high country of North Carolina in 2019. 

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I have been teaching watercolor and creative mixed media since the 90s. I taught watercolor at the Museum of Art in San Juan, Puerto Rico (El Museo de Arte San Juan) and creative mixed media at both the Students’ Art League in Old San Juan (La Liga Estudiantes de Arte) and my studio in Puerto Rico’s eastern mountains. I also taught watercolor workshops to convention groups coming to the island as well as worked with artists privately with their portfolio development and those wishing to advance their skills. While filming on the island, actress Jane Seymour, an avid watercolorist herself, sought me out for private watercolor instruction.

 

I am an award-winning artist, with work now in collections around the US and internationally. 

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I have long thought that my job as an artist is to create paintings that offer refuge from the craziness of everyday life. I have come to believe that the reason why life has become so crazy is because we have become so disconnected… from society, from the planet, from ourselves. We have become a society of droids using machines to navigate through our daily routines rather than using our senses. With my work, I strive to recreate the sensations one feels when there is a connection. In my case, the connections would be between you and the painting, you and the inspiration, and ultimately between you and me.

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I want my paintings to embrace you and pull you into their worlds. It then becomes important to keep you there and entertained. My rhythm and detail are choreographed to engage you and keep you WATCHING the paintings rather than simply looking at them. I want you to watch the painting the way you WATCH dancers on a stage. You don’t simply look at them. You become involved with them.  I intend to choreograph my paintings for your eyes much the same way choreographers create their dances for movement.

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In an effort to achieve this purpose, I use a color palette that I believe will embrace you. I then rely on value, rhythm, and “littleness” to be your dance steps. Your eyes will have to move to see it all and in the time it takes to do so, you will be removed from the insanity of the world. That’s my “job”.

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I think that the insanity we are experiencing now is caused by disconnection, from each other, from nature, and ultimately from ourselves. I use various techniques to remind you that we are ALL connected. What impacts one impacts all. When I paint is really the only time I feel connected to the whole. I find solace in painting and it is my wish that you find solace in viewing.

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I already know the news and it’s distressing at best. In ending, truth be told, I like eye candy. It makes me happy. I want you to be happy too.

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