Paintings

I picked up a studio at the Greenville Center for Creative Arts this past April…..just to paint! And it has become a haven for me. I feel I have always been a painter at my core. I do love experimenting with other art techniques, and I did study textile design for my BFA at RISD. But ultimately it is paint that draws me in. Acrylic, oil, or even gouache…..doesn’t matter. It is the feel of the brush with the paint in my hands on the canvas or paper. It is the connection between my mind and the final piece…..a process that takes faith. It starts with an urge to paint, and over time the art reveals itself to me. I just have to show up to do the work.

My studio at the Greenville Creative Center for the Arts (GCCA), all work by myself, Sofia Sayer

Tarot

I picked up reading the Tarot for myself about a year ago. Something about it just drew me in. I was gifted the Rider-Waite deck, then I bought a book to help me read it….and I was hooked.

Above is The Rider-Waite deck, definitely the most recognized Tarot deck today. The art is by Pamela Colman Smith, who was a bohemian woman living in NYC at the time, and she completed the art to be published in 1909. I learned she attended Pratt in Brooklyn! I find this so interesting, myself being a graduate of a similar art college, Rhode Island School of Design.

…… So I decided I needed to illustrate my own deck.

Art I created for the “create collections” online class by Victoria Johnson

Here is how it started. I took an online art class called “Create Collections” by Victoria Johnson. The assignment was to illustrate a bird and a butterfly. Which I did, as you can see in the top right piece of mine. This is gouache and digital procreate. Then I created the coordinating pieces you see here. As I was working on these pieces it dawned on me that they needed to come to life, and I believe the Tarot is their path.

The Emperor Tarot card

I spent more time sketching out my plan for this deck than I have illustrating it so far. Since there are 78 cards, it is a lot to think about. I have decided to pursue animals, flora, and some sacred symbols. I envision the deck being paired with a small book explaining the symbolism in each card.

So there you have it! This is my big project that I have been working on between other projects, and life of course. I hope to post more progress for you another day!

Portrait studies

The summer of 2021 was full of art making adventures for me. I spent the majority of this time with a focus on portraits in particular. I enrolled in a 3 month long class at SVA in NYC to learn oil portrait painting. The class was taught over zoom with the fine artist, John Parks, as my instructor. I also did a few pieces through a Make Art That Sells class with Lilla Rogers. I discovered I really love creating portraits! Below are images of what I created.

Oil under painting, created over 1 class session of about 3 hours.

This piece I made in Procreate. The lettering is hand drawn by me.

This was a quick oil painting study I made in about 2 hours. 12 by 16 inches.

I spent about 6 or 7 hours on this oil portrait. The details of her dress were really fun for me! 11 by 14 inches.

This is the actress Viola Davis. I created this in procreate.