Artist Bio: Lars Westby was born in Bellefonte Pennsylvania, USA. He earned a BA in Art History and a BFA in Ceramics from Penn State University and an MFA in Fine Art from the University of Colorado, Boulder. After receiving his MFA he worked on boats and on restoring historic homes in Maryland and Pennsylvania for a number of years before moving to Baltimore, MD to work as a full time Artist. During this time he worked primarily in creating large ceramic sculptures often done in multiples. These works have a biomorphic/industrial feel related to where he grew up and his travels. Conceptually they talk about work itself and the relationship of the hand in creating. After having an inspiration/epiphany of sorts he began creating two series of abstract acrylic paintings. One series involves creating a high relief surface of paint that protrudes from the picture surface like a field of colorful stalactites.
Artist Statement: This is a recent series of Paintings I have been working on after having created Ceramic Sculptures for many years. After having an epiphany of inspiration I took the initiative to create two series of paintings. One series are the High Relief Paintings and the other series are the Droplet Paintings as presented here. The Droplet Paintings are created by dripping thousands of droplets of paint through a grid onto a canvas. The paint is brushed over the grid in semi- abstract patterns repeatedly in layers until the canvas is thoroughly covered and the desired “image” is achieved. The result is an abstract image that seems to allude to something in its layers. What image seems to emerge from the Painting? What does the viewer see? It is this mystery of alluding to something in the paint that I hope will compel and bring intrigue to the viewer. Of course it could be the paint itself that I allude to as well. It’s about finding something in the unknown.
