Rising Stars: Meet Laura Wilkins

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

Hi Laura, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My story began at a very young age, in the kitchen of a one-bedroom apartment in the company of my grandfather. I don’t remember exactly when we started spending most afternoons together, but I do remember I didn’t grow up with store-bought coloring books. We were creating our own. I come from a creative family, but they were not painters or sculptors. They were creative because the circumstances forced them to be.

It was a post-communist era in Romania around 1995- 1996; the country hadn’t recovered yet and people still didn’t have much. But in my house, we had arts and crafts. We drew and painted, played cards and chess, and even made our puzzles from scratch. I grew into an artist slowly. So slowly, that I only recognized that in my early twenties while striving to finish a psychology degree.

I met my husband around the same time. He was 5,218 miles away from me and my biggest fan and supporter. He still is. We fell in love quickly and hard. If there is something I would say about him, is that he is one of the best artists of our time. We traveled a lot, and moved around, while my ideas and skill regarding my work grew bigger.

My work evolved in ways I have never imagined; moving from more traditional drawing to hyperrealism and returning to more simple shapes and forms. I have great empathy for all living things, which is why wildlife is at the center of my work. I have been exploring watercolors for the past two years, and I have found peace in the movement of the layered washes that I’ve never experienced before. Giving up control is a fundamental part of my process. Birds have become my favorite subject lately.

Being a full-time artist and sharing the love and appreciation of nature with my collectors from all over the world is the best part of my job. I feel grateful and humble that I can spend most days in my studio creating and with the help of my collectors making a change in the world.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The last few years have been rough. Because of moving every year or every two years to another state or country, the biggest challenge was my workspace. Moving an entire household is a long and at times stressful process. I thrive in uninterrupted studio routines, which are difficult to keep once I start packing my studio space until I unpack it in the new place.

This is a four to eight-week process, where I am focusing on other aspects of my job like planning future projects, creating content, research, website maintenance, or learning something new. The lack of stability at times is a mental struggle for a creature of habit like myself.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a mixed-media painter and a world traveler continuing to experience life in different cultures and time zones. I find myself most redeemed by incorporating an intuitive choice of colors, layered washes, and a variety of textures, creating movement and emotion through bold and earthy pigments. My work is inspired by our connection to the ocean and land, mirroring the variation in biodiversity. I refuse to be constrained by one medium or technique.

As I grow personally, so too my technique develops. My continued growth as an artist embodies an appreciation for balance. At some stages, abstraction can be observed in my work, at others interpretations of realism, and at times a cohesive mixture. My devotion to the preservation of animal life is a major driving force behind both my work and personal ethos.

Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
I consider myself lucky because I had a great childhood full of love and people that loved and cared for me. It is impossible to name one favorite childhood memory. I have multiple favorite ones. They all involve creativity.

Evenings spent with my mother showing me how to draw different items of furniture or clothing; making our puzzles with the help of a couple of magazines, glue, and some cardboard; baking “cozonac”(Romanian Sweet Bread-usually made during Christmas or Easter Holidays) with my grandmother while she would tell me Brothers Grimm fairy tales; watching old cartoons with my grandfather projected on our kitchen door; playing badminton with my mom in the yard of a nearby school. My family is the reason I am a creative person and the reason I chose to be an artist.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.laurawilkins.art
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurawilkins.art/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laurawilkinsart/