Denise Bowles’ art show “The Shedding” opens on September 7, 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm.
Denise works in acrylics, watercolors, and mixed media. She states, “I explore with texture, line and color in an attempt to understand myself and my universe; where I fit into it, how I affect it, and how it affects me.”
She battled several chronic conditions in her life and uses her work as a healing mechanism. Sometimes anger comes through her artwork, but acceptance and power is achieved through research, open mindedness, and imagination. She selected “The Shedding” for the name of this show for that reason - she is shedding away her worries of how to keep living and focusing more on just living.
When creating a piece in acrylic paint she tends to do several opaque and translucent layers; glazing back and forth into the dark and lights, warms and cools until she achieves what she is after. Sometimes she will add other materials such as fabric, paper, ink, hair, bone, and other found objects. In watercolor, Denise enjoys wet on wet technique as well as wet on dry. In her mixed media sculptures, “I visualize a concept or image of the finished piece when I see it on the shelf at a second-hand store or in her recycle bin - then I work my ideas out on paper or on the object itself.”
Growing up in the rolling hills of the Palouse influenced her use of organic shapes and earthy textures. “I feel calmness and fear from nature, people, and the world; these states of mind bring me a feeling of being alive. I portray those intense feelings in my work as a form of release or therapy,” said Denise.
Battling multiple autoimmune diseases for most of her life Denise has had many ups and downs, and it has greatly impacted her work. At times she has been physically unable to hold her brush to the canvas, but her mind was always working out her next artwork, “I would research my way back to health and in that process learn so much about my body, what was going wrong, and what I could do to help it, and when I came out the other side I was ready to produce.”
For Denise art is therapy. It is a process of recovery. She uses art to grow, learn, calm, and excite herself and others. “I am honored to share my journey, my healing, and it will produce a feeling of hope in others so that they can find their way towards recovery.”
Denise has exhibited at the REACH, Washington State University Tri-Cities, several galleries in California, and her artwork is on several tiles at the Tri-Cities Airport. This is her first solo show at DrewBoy Creative.
Zilliox will perform live music at the show opening.
###
DrewBoy Creative events are free, but if you do have the capacity to give we suggest a $4 donation at the door.
