The Artist Within - Fifth Solo Gallery Show

by Lauren Walker

When I started this journey almost five years ago, having one solo show so early in my career was a dream come true. Now, here I am, almost five years later, and I'm doing my fifth solo show! I knew from the very beginning this was what I wanted. I am purpose-driven, and for the past five years, I have worked to improve my ability. Not only has my creativity given me absolute joy, but my biggest success has been sharing it with the world.

Art is not a hobby; it is my purpose. After my first experience at the Kent Farndale Gallery in 2023, I knew I wanted to do it again. I was truly overwhelmed by the support from my community. Nothing is better than standing in a gallery with my work on the walls. My dream came true! From then on, I knew what I wanted to do for my next show at the Kent Farndale Gallery.

My goal was to create 25 pieces for a monochrome series of interesting buildings around Ontario. This took me a year and a half to create, and I have achieved my goal once again. I used the work of my photographer friends Tom Zsolt and Nick Vanderzwet as inspiration for a few of my pieces. Their work is beautiful and I'm so thrilled to have collaborated with them!

Why black and white? I've gotten a lot of feedback from artists who find a monochrome palette to be very challenging. This is precisely why I choose to do it. I am an old soul by nature, and black and white elicits a feeling of nostalgia. There are also so many values between black and white, and my goal is to find the shades in between. I always take the road less travelled, and my subject matter is not always easy. I was never good at geometry and here I've dedicated an entire series to architecture. I will also have some surprise black-and-white portraits of familiar faces. That's the thing about being an artist: if you don't push yourself, then you'll never get better. I'm not sure I will ever go back to colour. I'll keep painting what makes me happy and follow where my art takes me.

You're invited! I invite you to the opening reception of my fifth solo show called "Interesting Buildings in Ontario." The opening reception is on Saturday, May 3rd, from 2 to 4 p.m. You will have an opportunity to win exclusive prints of my work and enjoy some light refreshments.

Happy painting!

Lauren Walker, The Artist Within, Instagram @theartistwithin86

www.theartist-within.weebly.com