“D.J.”,  Reed Pen& ink wash on Arche paper, 22″ x 30″

Welcome.

This blog serves as a venue for my artworks to participate in the larger artistic, reflective process and production conversation with other art makers and lovers.

The making of art is so intensely personal and public at the same time for an alla prima,  painter of life who is as likely to be painting on the side of the road, or in someone’s house, as in my studio.  With the exception of my poetry and some mixed media works, I primarily paint in oil, and secondarily in pen and ink with some watercolor involvement.  That said, I will use whatever is at my disposal to get the (dirty) job done.

There is only one question to be answered about a painting:  Does it have inner life?  This is the question I ask myself before I take the painting off the easel, before I disengage.  My paintings are my attempts to make sense of and figure out what’s real in the world, to manipulate materials and to be brave about the way I live my life.  I started painting at the encouragement of my friend and master painter, Stella Ehrich, in the summer of 2002, at the age of 43.  That first painting of a dumpster behind Powers’ Market told me I was born for this work, that I had met my energetic match, and that I would change my whole life as a result.  I have made my artworks almost every day since.

I am married to the very sexy and smart, Jon Lev, and I am the mother of the two most amazing women on the planet:  Anna and Phoebe.  I am a lucky woman, in every single way that a human can be lucky, and I never, ever take it for granted. I owe my work ethic to my parents, my sense of bricolage to my grandmother, and my love of nature and kick-ass cowgirl attitude to my birthplace and home for fourty years, Colorado.  English is my first language, Spanish is the language of my heart, and color is my most native language.  My sisters and my friends are my confidants, support and sounding boards.  I am part of a community of artists, both living and dead,  to whom I owe my art education.

A deep impulse to learn and express my understanding of reality motivates my work and my life in all its facets.  I am not a leader, not a follower, not a policy maker or a judge….my role linguistically, educationally, artistically is–and has traditionally been– one of interpreter and translator.

I welcome your your visit to this blog and your commentary.

Paz, pan, flores y amor,

Viola Moriarty

Upcoming Exhibitions:

6 July 2010 4:00 pm Opening Reception for Anna Moriarty Lev’s Art Exhibit and the Screening of Dylan Pasture’s Palace Hotel accompanied by a short by Georgia Roxon @ Images Theater, Spring Street, Williamstown, Massachusetts

August 2010 Annual exhibit of recent works @ South Street Cafe, Bennington, Vermont

September 2010 “El idioma de mi corazon” , Coyote Flaco, Williamstown, Massachusetts

Late October-Early November 2010 “Los dias de los muertos” Images Theater, Williamstown, Massachusetts