Growing up as a teenage cartoonist in Eastern Washington, I began my interest in graphic arts by studying comic books, looking at layout, color, and the combinations of type styles and hand lettering. My early experiments with pen and ink (styled loosely on a combination of Aubrey Beardsley and Robert Crumb), made me aware of the need not only for control of the media, but also for the desire to communicate to my readers the content of my ideas.

 

I have been a visual artist since the mid-70's: specializing in illustration with a sense of narrative- working with either images from nature, or fantasy sequences. My tendency is to fill the canvas with black lines and geometrics initially, (think the tenacious line-work of Stuart Davis), and then I soften, blend and fill the shapes with color. My palette is eclectic: I travel from straight outta the tube yellows and oranges to smoky blues, greens and purples.

 

Being a design instructor and Photoshop geek: computer software has influenced and helped me work greatly: especially in the beginning "comping" phases. I create images in Photoshop, print 'em, and then render meticulous drawings, much like the "cartoons" required to make Oriental carpet patterns. These get transferred to the canvas, and away I go.

 

My work career has influenced my art styles: my stint as a textile designer in the mid-90's made me fall in love with the 0# brush: and I have used the little brushes ever since, to paint, to detail, to line- everything! When you find that lasting thing that works, you use it, and I hope you enjoy my work on this site: it's all a process, and it is what I have dedicated my life to. Happy art to all of you!

 

Laura Ackerman

March 2019