I've been a big fan of Charlotte-based artist Sharon Dowell for some time now. Her paintings are like memories layered upon each other and stacked high in your mind. Whether it's one of her dazzling cityscapes or a ghostlike figurative painting, Sharon's work is exciting, pushing you to look a little deeper and longer.
I always want to know more about how people create: what inspires them, how they motivate themselves, etc. So I asked Sharon some questions about her work and inspiration.
Armando Bellmas: What moves you to begin a new painting?
Sharon Dowell: The satisfaction from completing a painting inevitably wanes and I begin to think about new ways to explore ideas, imagery, layers, etc. It's akin to being in a bustling city; that wonderful overwhelming feeling that there are so many things to do and see that the possibilities are never ending.
Sometimes inspiration hits with a feverish pitch and I cannot wait to get into the studio. Other times I glimpse something that I file away to explore at a later date, such as tangled power lines in a quiet alley or the beautiful geometry and order of farmland when fly across the country.
Armando: Do your ideas rely on actual snapshots of places and things or are you working from the memory of what you've glimpsed?
Sharon: A little of both. I try to capture the energy of place in my work. I usually have a camera on hand wherever I travel and my imagery is based upon my actual photos. When I am painting in the studio, the memory of that moment is incorporated into the work in the underpainting, color, and texture.
Armando: I love that layering of tangible and intangible. So in a painting like 'Pier', for instance, there's a memory in there, almost a reflection in the water and on the wood, tangible and intangible. Tell me about it.
Sharon: Most of my paintings begin with either patterns or an aerial view of a city--rooftops and streets, etc. It is my attempt to express that intangible energy one experiences in different environments--be it on a loud and bustling street corner or under a pier on a breezy day. The architectural imagery then creates a nice tension between the two layers. I allow the underpainting and texture to show through in certain areas. Visually, the transparency of the layers feels ghostlike, referencing who or what may have occupied that space in times past.
Armando: Would your work be different if you lived someplace else? How does living in Charlotte affect your ideas?
Sharon: I'm not sure if my work would be different, but I do feel that the one year I lived in New York City influenced my subject matter heavily. I had a difficult time painting there--so much wonderful distraction! But when I came back to Charlotte, I was able to have a studio, a sanctuary where I could focus solely on my work, and that made a huge difference.
I have painted scenes of Charlotte, but a lot of my subject matter tends to be of other places--Helena, MT, Asheville, Iceland, San Francisco, NYC, you name it. As mentioned, when I travel, I have my camera on hand and thus build up a large database of images to cull from. Because I am exploring (and romanticizing) these new places, I think they are sometimes a little more exciting to paint when I get into the studio.
[Check out more of Sharon Dowell's work.]
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