Darlene Furbush Ouellett

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I am constantly lured by the interactive and dramatic beauty between the land, sea and sky in all of its atmospheric conditions.

I am out to capture that fleeting moment that leaves me awestruck or humbled; a lifting fog, the last glowing light of the day. Because I hold the natural world with such reverence, I often choose to paint plein air. My goal is not to realistically document a place but to convey my initial inspiration; what I call that ”Ah Ha!” moment, and capture that essence.

I want to evoke the viewer’s senses; invite them to be intimate and experience a few quiet moments within them, feel the day, discover the poetry within; the sense of place.

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I was influenced by art at an early age in part to the artistic community in southern Connecticut where I grew up. My mother was an art/antique collector who knew many artists that would invite us to tour and watch them demonstrate various mediums in their studios/workspaces. My parents encouraged my interest in art by providing lessons in drawing, painting, and pastels. My parents were very unconventional individuals for their era. They were organic gardeners when it was not en vogue, built their own house, and were truly unique and creative people, so I guess becoming an artist held a certain sense of comfort and familiarity for me. A true product of the sixties, I experimented with many lifestyle and employment choices before circuitously re-uniting and re-engaging with the art world.

After raising my family, I finished my BFA as an adult in 1996 from the University of NH, and have journeyed forward since. I am working daily creating bodies of work. Local companies have purchased my work as well as private collectors throughout the US and Internationally. I have shown my work locally and regionally in galleries. I teach drawing and painting to adults in small groups as well as art therapy with several young adults. My hope through my teaching is to inspire others to appreciate and respect the beauty the natural world continually provides for us as well as facilitating to connect to ones own unique experiences, bringing out personal creativity.

I enjoy working with various materials. I love the act of creating; the process continually fascinates me. One moment my studio is full of oil paintings, the next, with fabric arts or sculptural pieces. I love experimenting with a variety of media. Printmaking is another medium I enjoy working with. Depending on the type of printmaking, it can be very process orientated or spontaneous producing magical and sometimes surprising results. If I weren’t an artist, I’d probably be a scientist.

My objective with my art is to remain true to the first sensory impression of whatever the subject is before me. I aspire to capture the essence or spirit of the natural world in my paintings; to evoke the viewers’ senses, invite one to be intimate and experience a few quiet moments within them. I want the viewer to want to smell, taste, feel the atmosphere, mood, sense of place or the essence of a human spirit in my paintings.