It seems as though everyone can be an artist these days. In theory, any absent minded individual can take a piece of canvas, slap some paint on it, and start promoting it as a masterpiece. In today's world, creativity is constantly encouraged and often results in slogans claiming, "If you want to be an artist you can, if you want to call yourself an artist you can, because you ARE an artist." But just because you make a handful of artworks from time to time, do you have the right to call yourself a true one? With such a pondering question at hand, we decided to go straight to the source for the best possible answer- the artists themselves!
Newton, Massachusetts is home to some amazing artists who have been kind enough to share their work with the community over the years. Lynda Goldberg, current resident of Newton, is known for creating one-of-a-kind works that are inspired by her awe with nature. She has exhibited her work throughout New England in both group and solo shows, motivating others to find their true inspiration and not be afraid to share it with the world. Her work is in many corporate, private, and non-profit collections in the U.S. and abroad and has received countless awards over the years including: Best of Show at Marblehead Festival of the Arts for the first piece below named "Depths", Honorable Mention at Newton Art Association for second piece below named "Sunflowers in Province".
"I have always been inspired by nature- how wonderful, awesome, powerful, it is. I am constantly seeing designs and patterns, interesting positive and negative shapes and spaces wherever I look- branches of trees, the leaves blowing in the wind, the construction of a fern- how its patterns and shapes are repeated in the same object."
Lynda's process for creating her nature monotypes is actually quite fascinating. She uses leaves, grasses, ferns, seaweed, eggshells, metal objects, meshes, string, and other items. These objects are themselves inked and placed on an inked plexi-glass plate, then a damp piece of paper is placed on top and the whole thing is run through a press. Therefore, when you see leaves on a piece it is the actual shapes of leaves she grabbed straight from the land of Newton! "It is the unlimited possibilities and uncertainty of what exactly will appear (in addition to the image being the reverse of what one worked on) that makes the monotype process so exciting. Each print is unique and the result of an adventure."
When asked what it means to be a true artist, Lynda was very informative in her explanation. In her opinion, being an artist one must love creating, taking risks, and accepting that not everyone will feel the same way as you do towards ones work. They need to think out of the box and think of creative ways to solve the challenges that will inevitably arise when working on a certain piece. "When I'm working on a piece, I try to convey what I was feeling when I was moved by something- to convey that feeling to the viewer; not to make a copy of what I saw."
When an artist is working on a piece, they have to envision the different paths they can take to get to the same end. A true artist thinks of these paths, visualizes what these different paths will look like, and decides which path gives their piece the look they need. There is no one way to convey a feeling through a piece of art- there are many ways and it is up to the artist to choose which one transmits it the best.
All this considered, it is clear that Lynda Goldberg is a true artist of her time. Art is about taking your surroundings or your feelings and expressing them through a certain outlet- whether it be paintings, films, drawing, etc. Simply taking a glance at Goldberg's pieces proves that she is truly connected with her art and is the definition of a true artist.
Watch a demo of how it works!
