ARTIST STATEMENT
Inspired by the Creator, It is my intent to encourage the ones who view my art to touch & examine the structure, the process, the message and the power between the paint & the canvas. Spiritually inspired, my paintings often have exuberant texture created through paints, water, oils, gels, pastes, powders and recycled matter. Many pieces are expressed through controlled paint flow, veiled words, eclipsed images or compounds. My passion is to engage the viewer in a one-on-one dialogue with the artistic creation.
Taken from the Holy Bible's Deuteronomy chapters 6 & 11, I refer to each of my paintings as a FRONTLET & inscribe each piece with a Bible passage as a testament & ministry. My passion is to give the FRONTLETS placements on every continent and in as many countries as possible.
"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as FRONTLETS between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."-Deuteronomy 6:5-9
The first piece of art I created was a pencil sketch of the cartoon character, Popeye. My parents were amazed that a 3 year old could replicate him so clearly, & put the piece in their safety deposit box. At the age of eight, they enrolled me in the first session of a lifelong series of art instruction. As a retired public school educator/ administrator and a graduate student whose accumulation of college credits well exceeded that of a PhD, I ascribe to the continuation of adding skill upon skill without restraint. Can one ever come to the point that learning has no added value? Instruction brings a deeper connection between the concept , the conveyance, and the finished piece of art; increases the repetoire of skill, invigorates the mind, and certainly challenges the artist to find the perfect balance in media and platform selection, completeness without coming short or going overboard, personal style and popular demand, level of abstraction or realism, subject and theme.
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Encouraged by colleagues and instructors, Elaine has entered competitions where paintings submitted to juried competitons have collected Grand Prize, First Place , & Second Place honors. Her art is in collections coast to coast in the United States and in Europe, Asia, Scandinavia, South America, Canada, and Africa.
Because comraderie develops friendships, offers the many benefits of networking, and increases knowledge and opportunity, the artist maintains membership in the Birmingham Art Asspciation, the Alabama Plein Air Artists, and other organizations. Elaine Mayes Art is blessed with an exceptional collection of venues and their proprietors who honor her by allowing her art to be displayed and available to collectors through their unique shoppes. Invited by individuals and agencies promoting artistic shows and displays, along with corportations and individuals who commission a special artwork for their home, family, friend, or building, she is increasingly committed to increasing the audience for Frontlets while serving the interests of enthusiasts.
Several pieces of art have been selected for reproduction in merchandise marketing for hospitality and design groups and have attained recognition in home interior publications.
Elaine has donated pieces of art to charities including the Alabama Interior Design Society, The Love Center, The Mary Hardin Center for Cultural Arts, Sav-a-Life, the Alabama Heart Association, Children's Hospital of Alabama, The Humane Society, Birmingham Area Community Grief Support , and the Orphan and Adoption group of Grace Life Baptist Church, McCalla, AL.