Meet Laura Pawlik of Atelier on Santa Fe Drive in Santa Fe Art District

Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Pawlik.

Laura, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My journey of studying dreams and oil painting both started in 2010. I had been introduced to who Carl Jung was through Alcoholics Anonymous and Al-Anon. Jung had influenced the spiritual roots of AA but more than that, I had met a woman at these meetings who held Jungian Dream Groups. I joined one of her dream groups and it truly transformed my life.

 Gradually I started to paint my dreams. The first dream I ever painted was a nightmare I had. I titled this painting Drowning in Georgetown Lake. In the dream, I’m a child sitting in a rowboat with my mother on Georgetown Lake in Montana. Somehow I end up in the water. I’m close enough to the boat where my mother can help me by extending an oar but I know she won’t. I don’t know how to swim. Just as I expect I watch my mother turn her back. That’s the dream. I couldn’t get it out of my head so I decided to paint it. It’s almost like the painting takes on a life of its own. I’ve had dreams about paintings of dreams I have done. The unconscious uses symbols in dreams to communicate and I have found the unconscious will enter into the paintings too.

I consider myself a conceptual artist. The dream is what is of importance and the paint is just a tool to communicate that message. The more I work with dreams and painting these dreams the more I am intrigued. I’ve had premonition dreams, cleverly layered dreams with multiple meanings with the same symbols and I have even painted a location that I had never heard of before the dream that really exits. I have been told my paintings have a haunting feel to them. I agree. They are haunting.

This creative journey of mine is always a surprise. I never know what I’ll be painting next.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It has not been an easy road. When you work with dreams you are working often with the Shadow, a side that is not often pleasant to look at let alone paint. The Shadow is the parts of ourselves that we are unconscious of. It could be a murderer, witch, thief and so forth. Although I must admit painting the witch was fun. That painting was called “Menopause”. In that dream, the witch was creating explosions by adding eggs and Coca-Cola into her boiling pot of bubbling liquid that was on her kitchen stove.

There is also the challenge of painting. Painting is hard. It takes a lot of practice and a lot of crappy paintings to achieve a good one.

We’d love to hear more about your art.
Atelier on Santa Fe is an Art Gallery where I show my dream-inspired paintings. People who visit have a chance to look at the paintings and absorb the colors, symbols and mood of the piece. It’s not unusual to hear someone say they feel connected with a piece of art I created. I love when that happens.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I plan on continuing my dream inspired life. Each night a new adventure awaits. I have no idea where it will take me but I totally trust the process.

Two of my paintings will be in the “Interiors” exhibition at the Cape Cod Museum of Art.
Exhibition Dates: January 16 – April 5, 2020
Gallery Talk: January 24, 2020 from 4:00 – 5:00 pm
Opening Reception: January 24, 2020 from 5:30 – 7:00 pm

Contact Info:

• Address: 910 Santa Fe Drive
  studio 101
  Denver, Colorado 80204
• Phone: 720-840-5594
• Email: LauraPawlik333@gmail.com
• Instagram: Laura Pawlik
• Facebook: Laura Pawlik

Image Credit:
Bryan Dahlberg

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