What is ‘failing toward success’?
-
-
Your Highest Potential
30 x 40″ oil painting by Holly Van Hart
$3800
Story behind the painting
Fail fast, fail often, fail forward . . . you may have heard these terms before. They mean that you have to fail many times before you succeed.
I prefer the more descriptive, happier-sounding ‘failing toward success’. If you’ve ever had the experience of painting (or any challenging creative endeavor), you’ll know that not every attempt yields success.
Even the most experienced artists create paintings that fail. Lots of them. That’s one way we learn, and it’s a natural part of the artistic process.
Recently I invested in a new digital system that will help me ‘fail toward success’ more quickly, and to create my very best work. Here it is . . .
New computer, monitor, painting tablet, and painting software – this set-up will help me ‘fail toward success’ more quickly
For now, I use this digital set-up to design paintings, and then use traditional canvas and oil paints to create the paintings. After 3 long months of slogging through user manuals and YouTube tutorials, I’m finally at a place where I can use digital tools to focus on creative design (vs fumbling around with the technology).
‘Your Highest Potential’ (above) is one of my paintings created with this new process. The name is a story in itself that I’ll share with you sometime.
In the future, using these new digital tools may morph me into a ‘mixed media’ artist. But for now I’m still in love with the beautiful, textured, buttery sheen of oil paints and don’t plan to give them up any time soon.
Bet you have have lots of experiences with ‘failing toward success’. What are your most memorable ones? Please email me at holly.vanhart@gmail.com. I’d love to hear about them.
On a different note . . . are you moving into a new home, remodeling, or just freshening up a room? Are you wondering how to jazz things up with splashes of color (artfully)? If so, you can get a Free Color Guide by clicking here – ‘The Top 7 Designer Secrets for Adding Color to Your Space‘.
What is success?
A new article published on The Commissioned!
Meet Holly Van Hart, the Energetic and Calm Artist
“You perfectly transformed my dream into reality in the form of a stunningly beautiful painting.”
— Dr. S. Hall, Ventura, California (a satisfied collector of Holly’s paintings)
One word that best describes your style: Energetic yet calm
1. What does a typical day in your life look like?
I wake up and can’t wait to get painting! Usually I’m in the studio and painting in the early morning, then enjoy breakfast with my husband and sons, then back to the studio for a full day of painting. Evenings are for taking care of the business part of being an artist…updating my website, responding to emails, etc.
2. What does your studio look like?
I have a home studio in a separate part of the house that comfortably holds me and lots of canvases – big and small! It has lots of windows and even a door that is mostly a window.
3. Tell us one unique thing about you and your art.
Collectors tell me they find my work inspirational. I’m honored by that, because with titles like ‘Possibilities Abound’, ‘Larger than Life’, and ‘Dream Weaver’, that’s exactly what I had in mind when painting them.
4. What do you love most about being an artist?
I love how it connects me to people…giving me new friends and strengthening ties with established friends.
5. What are 3 things you can’t live without in a day?
Painting, chocolate, time with my family and friends.
6. Where do you get inspiration when you need it most?
Internally, and from looking around in nature. Also, other artists are a huge inspiration.
7. What does success look like to you?
Making paintings that I’m proud of, and finding collectors who love to have them.
To create a stunning piece of calm and beauty, visit http://hollyvanhart.com/commission-painting .
To see the rest of Holly’s Top 50 Questions, click here.
Painting Inspirations Book
Free eBook!
Treat yourself to
inspiring art and ideas.
Get Holly Van Hart’s
Top 25 Paintings and favorite inspirational quotes.
Free Instant Download. Enter your email here –
(Printed book available on Amazon for $19.99)
Possibilities Alight
-
-
Possibilities Alight
24 x 30 x 2.5″ oil painting by Holly Van Hart
$2500
Story behind the painting
Meet “Possiblities Alight”. This painting features a bird’s nest resting in the middle of brilliantly lit branches and flowers.
All my paintings with nests are meant to express the boundless possibilities and opportunities we have in our lives, and are part of my “Possibilities” series. Larger-than-life eggs and nests symbolize the promise of our own capabilities, to be nurtured and explored and stretched to their fullest potential.
Interested? For purchase info, email holly.vanhart@gmail.com.
More info here –
Studio visit
Purchase details
Try Before You Buy program
If you’d like to see more available paintings, click here.
Interviewed on Silicon Valley TV
Holly Van Hart (left) being interviewed by Heather Durham (right) for her Silicon Valley TV show, SVTAGS
I was honored to be interviewed by Heather Durham on her Silicon Valley TV show.
“On this show, Holly talks about her art, career change, and some amazing honors she has received since she has started this new career. We also get a peak at some of her work.” – Heather Durham, Executive Producer, SVTAGS (http://www.svtags.org/)
Watch the first 10 minutes of the 30 minute show here –
Let’s stay in touch! (And get some free goodies.) Click here to learn more
Beyond the Visible
-
-
Beyond the Visible
48 x 60 mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart
$7500
Story behind the painting
What’s beyond the branches that we see here? ‘Beyond the Visible’ (above) nudges us to reflect on the mysteries of the unknown.
The painting is currently hanging in my home, but it could be hanging in yours!
For purchase info, click here. Questions? Email me at holly.vanhart@gmail.com
[Top 50 Questions] What if you’re not inspired to paint?
Possibilities on High
24″ x 30″ oil on canvas
Commission a custom nature painting
Yes, that does happen sometimes, unfortunately.
Usually I’m brimming with ideas for paintings, and almost always have a few ideas that are competing for attention on any given day.
But on some days I’m just not feeling it. When that happens, I follow the advice of Chuck Close, an amazing and famous artist, who says “Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work. . . . All the best ideas come out of the process; they come out of the work itself.”
That’s my experience too. Once I pick up a pencil or paintbrush, ideas will often reveal themselves. Then I’m inspired all over again!
Click here to see the rest of the Top 50 Questions
Have a question to add to the top 50? Please send an email to holly.vanhart@gmail.com.
The feeling of being home (and well taken care of)
Serenity
20 x 20″ oil painting by Holly Van Hart (sold)
Buy a print
View video of this painting being created
Every painting tells a story. When we look at a painting, we absorb and interpret the story in our own unique way.
My abstract nature paintings are about the beauty and peace of nature.
This painting, ‘Serenity’, shows 3 robin’s eggs, resting serenely in their nest. The strong reds in the nest, branches, leaves, and buds represent the fullness of life outside the nest. The lives of the 3 siblings in this nest are full of possibilities. When the eggs hatch into birds, they will experience all that life has to offer outside the nest.
That’s my story for ‘Serenity’. What’s yours? (Email me at holly.vanhart@gmail.com)
To see a video of this painting being created, click here.
For more “What inspired this painting” articles, click here.
Originally published in 2013, and just updated
Woodland Symphony
-
-
Woodland Symphony
60 x 40″ oil and acrylic painting by Holly Van Hart
$6500
Story behind the painting and in progress pics
You know that sense of grandeur we get when surrounded by a beautiful forest? That’s what I was aiming to capture with this painting, Woodland Symphony.
When giving this painting its name, the word ‘symphony’ came to mind. In a great symphony, all the musical notes work together in intriguingly complex and beautiful ways. In a painting, the color notes have to work together in similarly intriguing ways.
btw, if you’re curious, here are some in-progress pics of Woodland Symphony –
The beginnings of Woodland Symphony
Working on Woodland Symphony (almost as tall as I am)
Sometimes it’s better to work on a painting sideways
Woodland Symphony (left), Wandering in Wonder (center) and The Grand Escape (right), mixed media paintings by HVH. These paintings are currently hanging in my living room, but they could be hanging in yours 🙂
-
-
Woodland Symphony
60 x 40″ oil and acrylic painting by Holly Van Hart
$6500
Story behind the painting and in progress pics
Thanks for stopping by. If you’d like to see more abstracted forest paintings, click here.
For purchase info, email holly.vanhart@gmail.com.
How do you know when a painting is done?
Possibilities in Full Color
24″ x 30″ oil painting by Holly Van Hart
Purchase (email holly.vanhart@gmail.com)
When I look at the painting and am pleased with it, then it’s done.
To be pleased with it, the painting needs to convey the desired idea or feeling or mood, be well designed, well executed, and have some kind of pop or surprise or glow that makes it special. If it’s missing any one of these things, it’s not finished!
I sometimes have the feeling that a painting is done, but then after a couple of weeks, decide it needs further tweaks or even major changes. Then it goes back to the easel.
On rare occasions, I know right away when a painting is done. It feels like a personal breakthrough, and all the stars and moons have aligned, and I’m really digging what I see in front of me. Wish I had more of those days 🙂
Click here to see the rest of the Top 50 Questions
Be the first to get Holly Van Hart’s latest paintings, art exhibit news, and VIP members-only special offers (includes a free gift). Click here to learn more.
Sweet Escape
-
-
Sweet Escape
30 x 40 oil painting by Holly Van Hart (sold)
See available forest paintings here
We all need to escape sometimes!
[Top 50 Questions] Can I mix styles of art in my home?
Palm Winds (detail)
Oil painting by Holly Van Hart
See full painting here
In “Top Fifty Questions”, I’ll answer the top questions I’m asked as an artist. (These are usually asked at cocktail parties and other fun social events.)
Can I mix styles of art in my home? Yes!
Combining a mix of art styles in your home shows off your unique tastes, life experiences, and creativity. It personalizes your home, makes it even more interesting, and opens up whole new conversations.
That’s my humble opinion 🙂 To look at some ideas from professional interior designers, click here.
Click here to see the rest of the Top 50 Questions
Do you like to dream big?
-
-
How Dreams Are Made
36 x 48 oil painting by Holly Van Hart
Do you like to dream big?
I do! As a die-hard optimist, my art (and life) are inspired by the idea of limitless possibilities.
In ‘How Dreams Are Made’, the flowers represent the colorful opportunities in our lives . . . exciting and bountiful opportunities swirling all around us.
The visual inspiration came during a walk in Saratoga on a windy day. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught some gorgeous yellow flowers getting tossed around by the wind. A quick snap of the camera gave me a photo reference to work with.
Back in the studio, I quickly got to work. I wanted the painting to have a breezy look and lots of movement, like Field of Dreams.
This painting was fun, but it did not come easy! There were many points when I wondered whether it would succeed.
For some strange reason, a lot of my best work comes after those sinking moments of doubt. I think the uncertainty frees me up to make bold decisions.
Speaking of which . . . bold decisions are exactly what we need to chase big dreams. Let’s go for it!!
btw, you might also be interested in this article How do you know when a painting is done? One of the hardest decisions in making a painting is knowing when to stop!
😍 What fascinates you? 😍
Hello, my fearless friend.
What things in life fascinate you? What do you really love?
|
|
|
|
High school starts this week for our sons, so we did some family outings to San Francisco and Santa Cruz. This is us as we walked over the Golden Gate bridge, through a thick fog bank. I really love spending time with these 3 men! (That’s Erik on the left, and Ike on the right. Skyler snapped the photo.) |
|
|
|
| Other landscape paintings are still available. Would you like to see them? Click here – |
|
|
|
| OK, my most amazing friend . . . three cheers to you for following your fascinations! |
|
|
|
| P.S. Into forests or flowers instead? |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| btw, if this email was forwarded to you, and you’d like to get on my VIP list to receive future emails (one every 3 weeks), click here. |
|
Why do you paint so many aspens & birches? (video)
Click for more videos – https://hollyvanhart.com/YouTube-Videos
Latest art news – The Two Yvonne’s
Hi there.
Every once in a while in my VIP emails, I feature a collector of my work. Here’s a fun fact. Two collectors of my paintings are both named Yvonne and they are both CEOs of San Francisco-area companies. What a coincidence!
Meet Yvonne Linney –
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Paradise Found
-
-
Paradise Found
40 x 30″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart
$3800
Here’s a video on the making of Paradise Found –
Questions? Interested in hanging this painting in your home? Contact holly.vanhart@gmail.com. Click here for purchase info.
The Year in Review Highlights – 2020
2020 brought us a global pandemic and was a very trying year. There were many hardships but also some bright silver linings. Here are the highlights . . .
In February, Ike and I celebrated the 30th anniversary of our first date. What a fabulous 3 decades it’s been. Lucky us!!
We visited Ike’s Mom in Canada in January. She turned 90 this year! (shown: Erik, Oma, Skyler)
Recognized with an art achievement award from the National League of American Pen Women. Feeling so honored.
Did amazing local hikes and met fascinating new friends by joining the San Jose Mid-Week Hikers Group. The group stopped meeting in March due to the pandemic, but a few of us continued to hike together (socially distanced, with masks, in groups of 2 or 3).
Spectacular week-long hiking vacation in Death Valley with my friend Adrienne (pre “shelter in place”).
Our oldest son Skyler graduated with honors from Saratoga High School. Due to covid, he had a drive-through graduation. Sky then headed off to Ohio to study bioengineering at Case Western Reserve University.
With my friend Maria, we did a 2-week road trip and visited 5 gorgeous national parks in Utah. (shown: Arches National Park)
Received the prestigious Art Recognition Award from the The National Society | Daughters of the American Revolution.
Loved loved loved the bounty from my husband’s garden – figs, tomatoes, persimmons, lemons, cala lilies, begonias and more 🙂
Mountain biked in the local Fremont Older Open Space Preserve every week with my friends Ellen and Ying. We usually cancelled when the air was smoky (as in this pic) but sometimes we just needed to get out there!
Started mentoring first generation college-bound students. The MVLA Scholars AVID mentoring program is all volunteer and very impressive.
At Mirada Fine Art Gallery in Colorado for my solo show. I’m proud to be working with this prestigious gallery. It has been selected for many awards, including American Art Awards “Top 25 US Galleries”.
Thanks to great friends, we enjoyed many happy hours and meals outside this year. Socially distanced, sometimes with masks, always super-fun.
One last highlight . . . and the most important for 2020 – Our family and extended family remained Covid-free. Knock wood. We have been so very fortunate.
All the best to you, my friend, for next year and beyond. Stay healthy. The best is yet to come!
Do you believe in unlimited possibilities?
Unlimited Possibilities
Oil painting by Holly Van Hart (sold)
Buy a print
“Unlimited Possibilities” is all about the unlimited possibilities of the baby birds, not yet hatched, with their whole lives still ahead of them.
Parallels can be easily be made with our own lives and our children’s lives. No matter what age we might be now, the possibilities ahead really are unlimited. How exciting!
If you look closely, you can see underlying texture on this painting is oval shaped; this is meant harmonize with the shape of the eggs themselves.
The texture adds complexity to the painting, and symbolizes the complexity of nature and our lives. We may have unlimited possibilities in our lives, but it’s not always easy to take advantage of them.
Unlimited Possibilities
Side view
20″ x 20″ oil painting by Holly Van Hart
Unlimited Possibilities was one of 18 paintings in my solo exhibition at the Triton Museum of Art. For videos, pics, and a Triton Museum catalog (free), click here.
3 abstract nature paintings
‘Autumn Dance’ ‘Summer Sparkle’ and ‘Amid the Scent of Roses’
Currently hanging my my home, but could be hanging in yours 🙂
Want to see more pics of installed paintings? Click here.
The Stories They Tell
Did you know that aspen colonies can be thousands of years old? In fact, one of the world’s oldest and most massive living organisms is a grove of quaking aspens. It’s in Utah and it is 80,000 years old.
Is aspens could talk, could you imagine the stories they would tell?!
-
-
The Stories They Tell
36 x 48″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart
$4800
Story behind the painting
-
-
The Stories They Tell
36 x 48″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart
Inquiries: Email holly.vanhart@gmail.com
-
-
The Stories They Tell
36 x 48″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart
Inquiries: Email holly.vanhart@gmail.com
Above All Things
-
-
Above All Things
48 x 48″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart (sold)
-
-
Above All Things
48 x 48″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart
To live life to the fullest, we’re often told to give the highest value to our relationships. And that things like fancy cars, clothes, homes, TVs, phones, etc give us only very fleeting pleasure.
Do you find this to be true for yourself?
I do, for the most part. Spending time with family and friends is my absolute favorite thing in the world. Hands down. Without question. I value these relationships above all things. (Hence the name of the painting.)
Don’t get me wrong . . . many things give me lasting pleasure too. Mostly visual things. I still love the shape of the wedding ring we picked out over 15 years ago. And the windows in our home that let in lots of light. And some pieces of our furniture. My husband’s garden. The list is very long.
What’s your experience? What do you value ‘above all things’?
To check out more flower paintings and the inspirations behind them, click here.
This painting is sold. To see all available paintings, click here.
Can I see your studio? (Video tour + invitation)
Yes! Here’s a video tour video. (Also, you are invited to visit in person. Click for details.)
It’s actually, 3 short video tours – a partial tour of my home gallery, a tour of the (cleaned up) studio where I paint, and a tour of the (messy) studio a few days before the event.
Want to check it out in person? My studio is located in Saratoga, CA. Please call or email me (650 646 5590, holly.vanhart@gmail.com) to make an appointment. Click for details.
Do your children like art? (Video)
For more videos, check out http://hollyvanhart.com/YouTube-Videos
Why do we love birch trees so much?
Do you love birch and aspen trees as much as I do? These days, I’m happily immersed in autumnal birch tree forests.
Here are some details from my in-progress painting, Autumn Dance (48 x 36″) –
There’s something about them that seems to be universally appealing. For one thing, they are so gorgeous.
Birch and aspens look very similar to each other, so I had to look up what the differences are. If you’re curious, here are the highlights –
- Birch are famous for having bark that peels back like paper; aspen bark does not peel.
- Birch trees grow in the eastern US and Canada, while Aspens are found all over North America, Europe and Russia.
- And, amazingly . . . each ‘colony’ of aspen trees actually shares a single large root system. The root system can be huge, covering multiple acres, and can be thousands of years old. As old trees die off, the root system sends up new trunks. Incredible!How about you . . . what are your favorite trees?
btw, here’s the completed painting –
-
-
Autumn Dance
48 x 36″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart (sold)
-
-
Autumn Dance
48 x 36″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart
And here’s the completed painting hanging on my living room wall (left) –
‘Autumn Dance’ ‘Summer Sparkle’ and ‘Amid the Scent of Roses’
This painting is sold. To see all available paintings, click here.
Do Tortured Souls Create Better Art?
Some people think that depressed or angry people create better art. Is that true?
Or, can happy people create masterpieces too?
There are no simple answers to these questions of course, but just for fun let’s look at a sample of the world’s greatest artists (my personal faves) and explore the question. Here goes . . .
“The New Novel”, Winslow Homer, 1877
Winslow Homer (1836-1910) was considered the greatest American painter of his time. He created extraordinary landscapes, marine paintings, and figures too. Homer was a recluse and a bit odd, but not depressed, enraged or insane. That’s one point for ‘satisfied souls’.
“Goat Horn with Red”, Georgia O’Keeffe, 1945
Georgia O’Keeffe (1887-1986) revolutionized American modern art with bold abstracts, landscapes and flowers. For decades she lived by herself in New Mexico, and sometimes suffered from serious depression. One point for ‘tortured souls’.
“No. 1 (Royal Red and Blue)”, Mark Rothko, 1954
Mark Rothko (1903-1970) was a Russian-Jewish abstract painter who emigrated to the US at the age of 10. He achieved huge commercial success during his lifetime. Rothko was most certainly depressed, drank heavily, took barbiturates, and sadly, at age 66, committed suicide. Add a second point for ‘tortured’.
“Norham Castle – Sunrise”, JMW Turner, c 1835
JMW Turner (1775-1851) was a renowned English landscape painter known as “the painter of light”. Turner seemed like a fairly normal guy. He had plenty of friends, and wasn’t depressed, enraged, or insane. Now it’s even, two points for ‘tortured’ and two points for ‘satisfied’.
“La Grande Vallee XIII”, Joan Mitchell, 1983
Joan Mitchell (1925 -1992) was a prominent Abstract Expressionist who lived in Chicago, Manhattan, and Paris. Mitchell was an alcoholic, often depressed, and described many of her paintings as “violent and angry”. ‘Tortured souls’ lead at 3 points to 2.
-
-
Dance of Chances
31 x 50″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart
$4500
This last painting, very humbly put after the ‘greats’ above it, is mine. As for me, am I enraged or depressed or feeling like a tortured soul? No, not especially, but on any given day I may be any of those things. (Just ask my husband and children.) Is my art better on those days? No, but I think it is more experimental, sometimes to better effect but not always.
Summing up this totally non-scientific survey . . . The ‘tortured souls’ are ahead at 3 points (Rothko, O’Keeffe, Mitchell) to 2 (Turner, Homer). Perhaps the conclusion is ‘you don’t have to be unhappy to create great art, but it helps’.
What do you think? Do tortured souls create more expressive art? Leave a comment on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hollyvanhart or Email me with your thoughts – holly.vanhart@gmail.com
Related links:
Abstract landscape – Sense of Marvel
New!
-
-
Sense of Marvel
36 x 48″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart
$4800
Story behind the painting
Some earlier experiments with watercolor techniques (using acrylic paints) have led me to paint a whole new series of abstract landscapes. ‘Sense of Marvel’ is one of the latest paintings in this series.
I’m always pushing myself to paint more abstractly. When you look at this painting, what do you see? Please lmk! (holly.vanhart@gmail.com) I’ve heard many interpretations and don’t want to spoil your fun by listing them here.
Would you like to see this painting in person?
To purchase, email holly.vanhart@gmail.com. Free shipping in the US.
Birch Trees in the Fall
Autumn Gold
24 x 18 oil painting by Holly Van Hart
In the heat of the summer, I was dreaming about the crisp fall days of my favorite season. So here’s ‘Autumn Gold’.
Who doesn’t love the colors of fall leaves? The variety and brilliance are an artist’s dream!
To see more abstract forest paintings, click here.
Let’s stay in touch! Learn more