Come along for a walk into my dream world . . .
In Our Own Dream World is currently available. Free delivery in the continental US.
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Does ‘Wandering in Wonder’ make you want to wander through this forest? And take in the wonder of nature and life? Hope so!
Here’s how this painting looks in a living room –
Wandering in Wonder is sold, but you can see available forest, flower, landscape, and nest paintings here.
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Questions? Email holly.vanhart@gmail.com.
Thanks for your interest!
With this new tree painting Slipping Between the Notes, the “notes” are the leaves on the trees. My intention was to paint a sunny, happy forest that tempted you to come in and play.
Will you please join me here, running around and slipping between the notes?
Here are some in-progress pics for this painting –
Here’s the finished painting –
And here’s how it would look against a blue wall –
Want to see all available paintings? Click here to request a digital catalog.
Have you ever been drawn to something so strongly that you needed to do it? Even if it was risky and even if you might not succeed, you knew this was the right direction for you?
With ‘Into the World of Light’, I wanted the viewer to feel compelled to enter the painting. To bask in the warmth of the sun. To explore what’s over those hills. To ponder the freedoms that lie ahead.
To find the right direction for myself, I usually need lots of time to think and let my mind wander freely. Without that, it’s too easy to get pulled into everyday obligations and routines.
‘The gift of time’ is one of the best things I can do for myself. Do you find the same?
Here are in-progress pics for Into the World of Light –
The start of the painting. It may look like fog, but my plan is for this to become a well-lit forest.
Next I painted in the sunlit field and (at the top) some branches and leaves.
Here I’m using my new watercolor techniques (but with acrylic paints).
Close-up of the sunlit mountain.
Finished!
Into the World of Light
48 x 60″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart
As you scroll down, you’ll see the progression of a newly released painting called ‘A Deep Breath’.
But first, I’d like to share this quote because captures my inspiration for this painting . . .
“In nature, nothing is perfect and everything is perfect.” — Alice Walker
One cool way to make a perfect, imperfect painting is to rely on lots of drips. That’s what I’ll do here.
The drips can look like trunks, and branches, and, well, drips.
In the art world, when you can clearly see signs that something is a painting (and not a photo and not a photorealistic painting), we call this “painterly”.
This will be painterly.
Here’s a detail view.
The closer up you look, the more painterly it gets!
And (take a deep breath) here’s the finished painting . . .
A Deep Breath
48 x 48″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart
$6500
‘A Deep Breath’ is hanging in my entryway.
It could be hanging in yours!
Purchase info here
To purchase, email holly.vanhart@gmail.com
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 🙂
Thanks for stopping by. If you’d like to see more abstracted forest paintings, click here.
For purchase info, email holly.vanhart@gmail.com.
Click for more videos – https://hollyvanhart.com/YouTube-Videos
My intent for Winter Sparkle was to create a winter scene that draws you in.
The sky had to be sparkly, and give the effect of light shimmering through the trees. (Turns out this required about 20 layers of light blue, yellow and pink paints.)
I wanted the path to be inviting.
The painting was intended to give the feeling of one of those cold, wintry days that makes you feel so alive!
This painting is inspired by the same forest as my painting entitled Summer Sparkle. Same forest, different season. To see the latest spring, summer, fall, and winter forest paintings, click here.
To see all available paintings, click here.
Hi there. Hope you’re well!
We’re experiencing hot summer weather this week, but it feels like Christmas!
Two new 8″ brushes just came in the mail. (Guess I’m easy to please.)
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Sometimes we have to make choices in life . . . it’s this OR that. Here OR there. Tomorrow OR next week.
And sometimes we can do both! This AND that. Here AND there. Tomorrow AND next week. That’s called ‘Embracing It All’ –
Embracing It All is currently hanging in my living room. But it could be hanging in yours! Email holly.vanhart@gmail.com for details
Sunset Glow
30″ x 40″ oil painting on canvas (sold)
‘Sunset Glow’ is about the stunning beauty of the sky and water at sunset, especially its glorious colors. It’s also about the exciting reflections in the water, which amplify the colors and the take-your-breath-away feeling of sunsets like these.
If you look carefully, you can see some swooping textures underlying this painting (under the water, on both sides of the painting); on the left side, the texture runs from the water, through the docks, and into the horizon line.
What’s this texture about? It represents things that might not be so wonderful about this scene. Mostly the things we cannot see but can only speculate about, or the things we would need to have prior knowledge about.
For example, this harbor looks beautiful on this evening, but just 8 months prior, it had been completely ravaged by Hurricane Sandy. There’s always more to the story than meets the eye.
The artist creates the painting, and the viewer (that’s you) completes it with their personal interpretation. What’s yours? Email holly.vanhart@gmail.com.
Originally published in 2013, and just updated
For more “What inspired this painting” articles, click here.
In “Top Fifty Questions”, I answer the questions I’m most frequently asked as an artist (usually asked at parties and other fun events). For the answers, click on the links. Enjoy!
If you dig the warmth of the sun (like I do), please step into my forest.
‘The Grand Escape’ is fresh off the easel, not even dry yet!
Additional abstract forest paintings are available for sale here.
Celebration/Larger Than Life
54 x 72″ Oil painting by Holly Van Hart (sold)
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The larger-than-life sized nest and eggs in ‘Celebration’ are meant to represent the potential of the human spirit, nestled in nature’s bed. Read more here, “What’s up with all the nests?”
There’s also a personal story behind ‘Celebration’ . . .
Birds will build their nests with whatever materials are available to them. One spring when I was a girl, my mother sprinkled snippets of red yarn in the yard near our summer home. She then encouraged us to see what happened next. Sure enough, a bird built a nest using the beautiful red yarn. (Sure wish I had a photo of that now!)
In ‘Celebration’ the birds have built their nest with twigs and ribbons. To me, ribbons have a celebratory feel, hence the title of the painting.
This painting was created in phases over many months. It leverages what I learned about painting nests and eggs from the other Possibilities paintings, as well as reference photos for the ribbons.
Are you in the mood to celebrate?
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In Reminiscence, I blended two of my favorite subjects – forests and mountain landscapes – onto one large canvas (5 feet across). This is the first painting of this type.
In my travels to over 40 countries, I’ve seen lots of amazing scenery, and this painting was inspired by an amalgamation of vistas observed in these far-off places.
When you look at Reminiscence, do you feel the crisp air? I’d like to invite you to linger and appreciate the beauty of the distant mountains, the ripples on the water, and the light on the trees.
Are you free later today? Want to head off into this vista with me?
For more landscape paintings, click here.
For more forest paintings, click here.
Would you like to see this painting in person? Email me for a studio visit.
To purchase, email holly.vanhart@gmail.com. Free shipping in the continental US.
‘Safe’
24″ x 18″ oil painting by Holly Van Hart
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Looking at ‘Safe’ (above), you can see two hands from two different people. Their right hands are coming together to protect their greatest treasure – a nest filled with eggs.
‘Safe’ is part of my Possibilities series of oil paintings. It is meant to carry a message of warmth and caring and safety.
To read more about the Possibilities series, click here – What’s up with all the nests?)
‘Safe’ was inspired by a sculpture of two right hands created by Auguste Rodin in 1908. Over the years I’ve made dozens of paintings and sketches inspired by Rodin, including ‘Two Left Hands‘, ‘The Kiss‘, and others (see more here).
Rodin’s hands are captivating for many of us. Stanford University’s leading hand surgeon (Dr. James Chang, Professor and Chief of the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery) was inspired to create a fascinating art-science exhibit around them.
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Here’s one of my latest abstracted forest paintings . . .
Secrets Within is currently available. Would you like to see more? Please email holly.vanhart@gmail.com to inquire about delivery (free in the continental US) or to arrange a studio visit.
New! Where would this path lead us to? Not sure? Neither am I, but it looks like a fun and colorful place. Let’s check it out!
This painting is sold, but you’re invited to check out these available paintings.
Here’s my latest abstracted forest painting –
Embracing the Light
48 x 60″ mixed media painting on canvas by Holly Van Hart
$7,500
This pic shows Embracing the Light installed (center) –
Abstracted forest paintings by Holly Van Hart
Woodland Symphony, Embracing the Light, Autumn Dance, and The Stories They Tell
Please contact holly.vanhart@gmail.com or 650 646 5590 for availability and pricing. Your email or call is welcome any time.
Possibilities in Full Color is about the lives within these 3 eggs, still to be lived. They are meant to be ‘full color’ lives, filled with joy and delight and exciting challenges.
This painting is also about the homes (nests) of the baby birds and their parents. Do you see the reds, oranges, greens, blues, and yellows? This ‘full color’ nest represents the unique and wonderful personalities of all the individuals that live within it, as well as the wonderful variety of homes that birds build for themselves.
What do you see in “Possibilities in Full Color”? It’s always fascinating to learn how paintings are interpreted. I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments (holly.vanhart@gmail.com).
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.
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
When you see the color blue, what do you think of?
In the art world, the color blue represents trust, loyalty, strength, and leadership.
Truth is, when painting How Dreams are Made (above), none of that was top of mind. ‘Dreaming big’ was in my thoughts. Read/see more here.
What do school soccer and ‘Threshold of Miracles’ have in common?
Inspiration is everywhere!
The inspiration for this painting was a big bush of white roses planted at a local high school. The roses were brilliantly lit in the afternoon sun. I noticed them during the half-time break from my son’s soccer game, and couldn’t resist snapping a bunch of photos.
Using my computer, I tried a few combinations of photos until one stood out as the best design. Then I set to work in my studio with paints and brushes and lots of excitement!
This painting is called ‘Threshold of Miracles’. It symbolizes all the amazing things we can do with our lives (and the miracles we can create) when we keep our eyes open.
Wishing you lots of sunshine and miracles in your life!
Autumn Reds
30 x 24″ oil painting by Holly Van Hart (sold)
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The other day, a friend asked why I had started painting birch trees. One reason is that they are so darn gorgeous!! (I get reminded of this just about every day, because we have a lot of birch trees here in Saratoga.)
Birch tree trunks are highly textured and have a wide range of values, from white to very very dark in the shadows. And the leaves, in an autumn setting, offer a huge range of warm colors to work with – reds, oranges, yellows, golds. An artist’s dream!
Here’s an interesting question for you . . . ‘What advice would you give to your younger self?’
If you feel like sharing your answer, please drop me a note at holly.vanhart@gmail.com.
After giving lots of thought to this question, and tossing aside a few false starts, I found my answer . . . ‘To be successful in your career, you need to work smart, work hard, and add a healthy dose of self promotion.’ In the past I was pretty good at the 1st two (working hard and smart), and totally oblivious to the self-promotion part.
I’m starting to get better at it now (if I didn’t, no one would know my art existed!), but still have plenty to learn.
Do you have any tips? I’m all ears!
Holly
P.S. Speaking about self-promotion, the painting shown above is named ‘Every Restless Night’. It is sold, but available paintings can be seen online here. Free delivery for VIP members. Free local installation and hanging in the Silicon Valley area. If you’re interested, please email me at holly.vanhart@gmail.com.
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.
Have you ever taken a hiatus from something you really love?u
Bicycling is something that gives me great joy. I love the thrill of the hills (up and down), the views, the smells, and even the tired muscles. For some inexplicable reason, I let my bike sit idle for the last couple of years.
Have you ever taken a pause like that? Why do we do that?
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Palm Winds
30″ x 40″ oil painting by Holly Van Hart (sold)
Welcome to the tropics!
As you view “Palm Winds”, can you feel the warm wind on your skin? This painting is meant to instill a feeling of peacefulness from the beauty of the trees, sea, and sky. The empty picnic tables are inviting you to sit down and have a meal. It is a hot day, and the wind is offsetting the tropical heat.
The inspiration for this painting draws on my travels to Tahiti, Thailand, Costa Rica and other places of tropical awesomeness. In addition, it was inspired by an amazing photo taken by my friend Veronique Gillard. (Thank you Veronique!)
Palm Winds
Side view
30″ x 40″ oil painting by Holly Van Hart
This painting is sold. For available paintings, click here.
Originally published in 2013, and just updated
The holidays are almost here. Need a special gift for your special someone?
New! Petite Treasures are gift-sized original paintings by yours truly. They are created with the same great care used with my large-scale paintings, and with the highest quality archival materials. Each painting is museum-quality and ready to hang in the finest of homes and work spaces.
Click to see all available Petite Treasures
Treat yourself or a loved one! Click to see all available Petite Treasures.
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