Shirley J Ashenbrenner
ashenbrenner5@aol.com
ashenbrenner5@aol.com
Ashenbrennerart.com
614 Indian Hill Road, Coupeville, WA 98239.
Type of artwork: I am a painter and mixed media artist. Most of my work is abstract/non-objective.
How long have you been an artist? Off and on since childhood. A long time-out occurred while raising a family and operating my own public relations business. I started moving back into art in the early 1990s and don’t plan to ever stop.
Artist’s statement: Following a meandering line, finding shapes where others see none, and bringing forth images from my mind’s eye have fascinated me since childhood. The child who still resides inside me cannot resist the color, smell, and feel of paint. For many years, the sensual richness of oils captivated me. Later, the fluidity and brilliance of acrylics lured me with its freedom. Then, I began painting with oils and acrylics, and incorporating collage, textures and found objects in my work. Today, my work is predominately mixed media. For several years, I explored a process combining collage with layer-upon-layer of poured acrylic washes to build color areas. This exploration led to my series of large paintings built around the theme of relationships and an ongoing series of smaller works. More recently my work includes a series of acrylic paintings based on the theme of “Collective Ancestry” and an environmental series called “Save Puget Sound.” The pieces in the Puget Sound series comprise beach trash--discarded manmade objects found during beach walks near my home. The series focuses on the individual’s personal responsibility to keep our beaches and waterways clean and our sea creatures safe.
What is interesting and distinctive about you and your artwork? Much of my work springs from an emotional base and is fairly large with vivid bold colors. I aim for a sense of energy and freedom in my artwork. The Save Puget Sound series is distinctive by its very content and intent---to get individuals to take responsibility for keeping the Sound and our beaches clean and safe.
Why do you create? What are you passionate about? I create because it’s a part of me. It makes me happy. I’m passionate about making art. I like to try new things, experiment with new processes and media--and push the limits of the materials. I think I threw out all the “rules” long ago. The process of painting or making other types of art puts me in touch with my real self. I am most my true self when working in the studio.
What projects are you currently working on? Any upcoming shows? The Save Puget Sound series is still in process. There currently are 10 pieces. Two more supports are ready in the studio, so there will at least 12 and likely more. One of my priorities now is to get the first 12 onto my website. I also have begun to work with encaustics and assemblage, which means my studio is piled high not only with trash from the beach, but lots of found objects and 3-D objects, boxes etc. I currently have an exhibit of mixed media work at Skagit Valley Medical Center. Three pieces from the Save Puget Sound series are in La Conner Seaside Gallery for the Puget Sound—I Love You exhibit. During the exhibit’s opening June 6 I received an award for Exceptional Creativity in Depicting the Mission of People for Puget Sound.
What will guests see you doing at your studio during the Whidbey Island Open Studio Tour (OST)? I’ll likely have canvases and materials out for the process of mixed media with paint. I’m not sure if I’ll demonstrate a trash piece. I might if I can think of a way to do it without all the mess it entails.
Choose a piece that you will have for sale on the OST and describe why you created it, your feelings when you created it, and the process you went through. “B3” from the Save Puget Sound Series. The series represents a serious cause. But emotionally, putting the pieces together is just plain fun and more fun. Each one is like working a puzzle. Which piece works with which? Which create a theme within the piece? What should go where? In B3 I wanted simplicity and striking contrast to bring the message to the viewers. The large horse feed sack in its entirety topped by roofing shakes and offset by the caution tape offer a warning of the havoc and destruction ordinary things can create in and along our waterways.
614 Indian Hill Road, Coupeville, WA 98239.
Type of artwork: I am a painter and mixed media artist. Most of my work is abstract/non-objective.
How long have you been an artist? Off and on since childhood. A long time-out occurred while raising a family and operating my own public relations business. I started moving back into art in the early 1990s and don’t plan to ever stop.
Artist’s statement: Following a meandering line, finding shapes where others see none, and bringing forth images from my mind’s eye have fascinated me since childhood. The child who still resides inside me cannot resist the color, smell, and feel of paint. For many years, the sensual richness of oils captivated me. Later, the fluidity and brilliance of acrylics lured me with its freedom. Then, I began painting with oils and acrylics, and incorporating collage, textures and found objects in my work. Today, my work is predominately mixed media. For several years, I explored a process combining collage with layer-upon-layer of poured acrylic washes to build color areas. This exploration led to my series of large paintings built around the theme of relationships and an ongoing series of smaller works. More recently my work includes a series of acrylic paintings based on the theme of “Collective Ancestry” and an environmental series called “Save Puget Sound.” The pieces in the Puget Sound series comprise beach trash--discarded manmade objects found during beach walks near my home. The series focuses on the individual’s personal responsibility to keep our beaches and waterways clean and our sea creatures safe.
What is interesting and distinctive about you and your artwork? Much of my work springs from an emotional base and is fairly large with vivid bold colors. I aim for a sense of energy and freedom in my artwork. The Save Puget Sound series is distinctive by its very content and intent---to get individuals to take responsibility for keeping the Sound and our beaches clean and safe.
Why do you create? What are you passionate about? I create because it’s a part of me. It makes me happy. I’m passionate about making art. I like to try new things, experiment with new processes and media--and push the limits of the materials. I think I threw out all the “rules” long ago. The process of painting or making other types of art puts me in touch with my real self. I am most my true self when working in the studio.
What projects are you currently working on? Any upcoming shows? The Save Puget Sound series is still in process. There currently are 10 pieces. Two more supports are ready in the studio, so there will at least 12 and likely more. One of my priorities now is to get the first 12 onto my website. I also have begun to work with encaustics and assemblage, which means my studio is piled high not only with trash from the beach, but lots of found objects and 3-D objects, boxes etc. I currently have an exhibit of mixed media work at Skagit Valley Medical Center. Three pieces from the Save Puget Sound series are in La Conner Seaside Gallery for the Puget Sound—I Love You exhibit. During the exhibit’s opening June 6 I received an award for Exceptional Creativity in Depicting the Mission of People for Puget Sound.
What will guests see you doing at your studio during the Whidbey Island Open Studio Tour (OST)? I’ll likely have canvases and materials out for the process of mixed media with paint. I’m not sure if I’ll demonstrate a trash piece. I might if I can think of a way to do it without all the mess it entails.
Choose a piece that you will have for sale on the OST and describe why you created it, your feelings when you created it, and the process you went through. “B3” from the Save Puget Sound Series. The series represents a serious cause. But emotionally, putting the pieces together is just plain fun and more fun. Each one is like working a puzzle. Which piece works with which? Which create a theme within the piece? What should go where? In B3 I wanted simplicity and striking contrast to bring the message to the viewers. The large horse feed sack in its entirety topped by roofing shakes and offset by the caution tape offer a warning of the havoc and destruction ordinary things can create in and along our waterways.
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