Californian artist Ann Marie Campbell has worked for the past 30 years as a fine art muralist painting murals and frescos for hospitals, restaurants, salons and more. She has completed more than 20 major projects across the nation and Canada, and has received national recognition in newspapers, magazines and even on HGTV.
“The influence of Dutch masters, particularly Vermeer, is apparent in my work,” she says. Within her still life paintings, she “uses objects that remind us of the birth of new life, of being able to re-invent oneself.”
Fromage below is an example of encaustic painting that Ann created on panel. Also known as hot wax painting, encaustic paintings are created by brushing heated, pigmented beeswax onto a surface.
This medium gives her painting an incredibly thick texture—take a look at what I’m talking about along the back wall of the painting. Because the beeswax is densely applied, it doesn’t leave room for delicate precision of details, but I think that allows for a more vintage look to this particular piece.
Ann focuses on forms—the roundness of the cheese and grapes, the boxlike quality of the cement blocks, and the shadows each create against one another. Colors are not mixed fully together to create a seamless look; rather they are built atop one another to just give shape and a bit of dimension to each object.
In this next painting (an oil on linen piece) entitled Penny’s Lemons, we see a much more concise configuration of objects and infinitely more detail.
Ornate vases act as vessels that carry and give height to the bright yellow hue of the lemons and oil. A mask, dangling by a sheen of black ribbon, hangs atop the tallest vase, creating drama and edge to an otherwise quite typical still life.
Altogether, this scene makes me curious as to who Penny is and whether these items may be props for a one-woman theatrical show!
We round out our exploration of Ann’s work today with N’Poms, which is an oil on canvas painting. This is, to me, the most realistic of the three paintings showcased.
Empty spaces within the glass jar swallow up every last bit of the charcoal background, and mirrored reflections, glints of light and an almost untraceable blur really do make the pomegranates appear to be nestled within a thick film of glass.
The harmony between dark and light colors causes the juicy fruit and vivid green blanket to pop off the canvas, and gives the painting unexpected flair and excitement.
I personally love the intricate detail of each pomegranate seed prominently displayed within the halved fruit, as well as the countless folds of the velvety green tablecloth: it’s a stunning still life in every way.
Ann’s murals, icons and sacred work are superior in every respect. I urge you to head out to her website and check out her vast, diverse portfolio. The mood and emotion she is able to capture from saints throughout history, as well as Christ Jesus, are truly outstanding—so go take a peek!
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