| Mandy Main paints luminous oil paintings of the Northwest landscape, informed by nature and capturing a personal sense of place rather than an exact representation. She focuses on panoramic vistas and receding perspectives with a sense of depth and movement, and she pushes these elements to draw the viewer into the painting. She is an art historian and her passion is 19th Century American landscape painting, especially the Luminists, whose works remain an undying source of inspiration. Main alternates between representation and abstraction, using traditional forms and techniques but allowing them to be overshadowed by her own personal vision. The paintings are rendered in oils on canvas or wood panels using a subdued palette of warm colors, applied in layers of glazes to achieve a luminous effect. "The paintings are with me constantly," says Main. "I am continually coming up with ideas of what I want to say about nature and the world, and I never want to stop painting. I have to keep expressing these ideas." |