Elizabeth Leone Holmes – Reception/Artist Talk

Geography/Seasons 4 x 4: Souvenirs of an Artist is the new exhibit of paintings by Elizabeth Leone Holmes in the Mezzanine Gallery. The pieces are the culmination of a year-long exploration of four sites in New Hampshire: an island, an esker, a waterfall, and a mountain.  Each was visited and painted ‘en plein air’ four times, capturing the site each season. Please join us for a reception and talk by the artist.

Artist Statement:

The act of creating a work of art outdoors is so different… so humbling… when compared to the studio experience. Being in the woods a painter is never alone; the birds sing; the wind blows; and you race with the sun to depict a moment that really can never truly be captured. The experience is sensual: the scents, the sounds, the views – I revel in it.

As many plein air artists before me, I seek the same locations to paint again and again – in different light, in all weather throughout the year. Mount Chocorua is my equivalent of Cezanne’s Mont Sainte-Victoire; “Blueberry Island” serves me as haystacks served Monet. ‘Sanctuary’ is an esker that is truly mysterious – its energy is wonderous to me. And “Senter Falls” represents the ongoing challenge to paint moving water – waterfalls are hard!

While a painting can never fully represent the experience of ‘being there’, my work stands as a souvenir of these moment of bliss and wonder.

Artist Bio:

Elizabeth Leone Holmes (Betsy) is an oil painter with a passion for nature – the seasons, weather, light… all of it is inspiration for work. Recognizing that we are often too busy to notice the beauty around us, Betsy creates paintings to remind us of the splendor that is our environment- at all the times of the year. She explores the New England landscape from its mountains to the smallest rocks in rivers and creeks, throughout the seasons.

Education is another passion; Betsy is the retired Library Director at New Hampshire Institute of Art and continues to teach art history and plein air painting at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at Granite State College.

When not painting or teaching, Betsy works in a variety of conservation initiatives including as a land steward and invasive species monitor.