Agora Gallery
250 W. 25th st, Chelsea, New York, NY
The Essence of Enigma
January 12, 2006
RECEPTION
Lara von waldenburg works in a method that is exemplified in the finished art. It is expressionistic, sightly violent, and most constantly free. Her paintings are reminiscent of early surrealistic Automatism; a revolutionary style, which held that method and process were most important. Automatism meant that the artist tried to stop intellectualizing the images that came to his mind and subjected his intellect to constant automatic expression of subconscious feelings and visions. Lara says that she often begins with her eyes closed. That the first lines are painted in the dark, and only after does she search for a form in between them. From that moment on, every line arises from that line which preceded it. One can see this process as one's eye moves over the painting, like over a mobious strip. The eye is pulled through the negative space and the positive space and confused by the two. Because they are distinctly connected, they cannot be determined, and they remain loyal to their foundations. This remarkable movement through space can only follow an accomplished movement through process and Waldenburg has recognized this. It is with light that the artist guides his vision. It is with dark that an artist envisions the journey.
Artispectrum Magazine May 2011
Villages, figures, and rooms arch and twist with graceful curves in the playfully elegant and expressive worlds created by Canadian artist Lara von Waldenburg. She discovers a bright and exuberant energy in the architecture of buildings and towns, alive with vivid color and crisp, sweeping line. In acrylic and mixed media on paper, the artist creates intuitive scenes freely and without restraint, drawing a subtle confidence into each brushstroke and mark as she abandons any preconceived ideas and allows each piece to find itself. "Remaining open to possibility I reach into the core, look around and expose what comes out," von Waldenburg writes of her process. A strong sense of place rests at the heart of all of Lara von Waldenburg's paintings, profoundly influenced by the sharp contrasts between her French and German heritage which were highlighted by regular visits to her ancestral home in the French Alps and her free-spirited upbringing of frequent moves throughout Canada and the U.S.
Woodside Gallery , Harrison Mills, British Columbia, 2011
Dehlia Simper’s Woodside Gallery brings us more local talent with the colorful paintings of Chilliwack artist, Lara von Waldenburg. Waldenburg, primarily a painter, admits that her background as an illustrator influences her style, as her work has been featured on the book cover of “The Garden Party” by Katherine Mansfield, published in Korea 2010. After graduating from Parson’s School of Design, New York, N.Y. in 1990 her passion and profession has taken her from Newfoundland to the Pacific North West as well as back to her roots in Europe with worldwide exhibitions from Chilliwack to China. “I have been fortunate as an artist to approach colors and inspirations without much restraint’’ says Waldenburg. She often starts with a spontaneous and impulsive foundation of color and line from which she determines the image. “The truth is where the story lives’’ says Waldenburg and such is the importance for Waldenburg for her art to tell a story. This show explores that poetic vision.