How did I make this painting? Watch a video here –
This painting is sold.
To see available flower paintings, click here https://hollyvanhart.com/available-originals
Come along for a walk into my dream world . . .
In Our Own Dream World is currently available. Free delivery in the continental US.
Would you like to see more? Please email holly.vanhart@gmail.com.
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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.
‘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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Let’s be friends
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).
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.
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.
Funny thing happened the other night. A friend came to dinner and it was the height of the gladiolus season. He looked at my husband’s garden –
and then at this painting hanging on our living room wall –
He pointed to one, and then the other, and asked the question . . . which came first, the flowers or the painting?
Oddly enough, the flowers came from my imagination about 6 months before my husband grew his first gladiolus flowers. But his garden is spectacular and will inspire many more paintings to come!
‘Beckoning’ is currently hanging in our home. If you’d like to hang it in yours, please email me at holly.vanhart@gmail.com or call 650 646 5590.
To see all available paintings, click here.
High quality prints are available here (on canvas, paper, metal, framed, unframed, and so much more).
Treat yourself! 🙂
The abstract nature paintings you see on this website are inspired by life’s limitless possibilities!
Each painting is meant to convey a sense of plenty, fullness, color, prosperity, and opportunity. Sometimes we have all of these things in our lives. Sometimes we’re only wishing for them.
But it’s always nice to think and dream about them!
‘A Full Life’ is available for purchase (30 x 40″ original oil painting on canvas, painted on the edges, wired on the back, ready to hang, $3800 + tax). For a limited time, shipping is free for VIP members. Contact holly.vanhart@gmail.com for details.
‘Possibilities in Full Bloom’ is meant to convey the idea that life is chock full with possibilities. The eggs in the nest are radiating warmth, and the magnolia tree is loaded with lush flowers. Life abounds!
This painting was fun to create for many reasons. One of my favorite parts was leaving the underlying red color and texture showing through in many places. (Can you see this? Click on the image to see a larger version.) To me, this gives the work a fresh feel.
In case you’re wondering . . . click here to read “What’s up with all the nests?”
Voyage to the Possible
30 x 40 inches
Oil, acrylic, and silica sand on canvas
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Have you ever left a safe harbor & sailed away without knowing what’s on the other side?
How did that feel? ‘Voyage to the Possible’ is meant to capture the sense of wonder and excitement (and fear) associated with the launch.
The ‘voyage’ moments that stand out the most in my life are –
* having children (I really had no idea what was in store),
* starting my art career (lots of lessons learned in that leap),
* some of my new jobs while in high tech, and
* heading out on a 6 month-around the world trip (without hotel or other reservations, we simply showed up in 15+ South Pacific and Asian countries, backpacks on our backs, and winged it).
I’m curious . . . what were the top ‘voyage’ moments in your life? Would love to hear back from you on this (email me at holly.vanhart@gmail.com)
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Possibilities Unfurling
30 x 40 inches
Oil, acrylic, silica sand, and silicon wafers on canvas
$3,200
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Ever feel in the mood for something new & different? That’s how I felt while painting ‘Possibilities Unfurling’, first in a new series of abstract ribbon-esque paintings.
These ribbon-esques represent colorful nests that are woven together with ribbons and circles. These paintings highlight the promise of our own creativity and capabilities, to be nurtured and explored and stretched to their fullest potential.
Look closely and you’ll find areas of heavily textured paint. These textures are created with silicon wafers and silica sand, and represent creativity – creativity in its most universal sense, and also the technology innovation specific to Silicon Valley in northern California. (Silicon wafers are fabricated from silica sand, and are used to make computer chips.)
Silicon Valley, like the world itself, is alive with possibilities. And that will be the name of this new ribbon-esque series of paintings, ‘Alive with Possibilities’. See more here.
Request a catalog of available paintings: contact@hollyvanhart.com
Welcome! Here’s a new small painting fresh from the studio.
‘Fire and Ice’ is one painting that happens to be on two canvases (which is called a diptych, pronounced dip-tic).
Fire and Ice 1
Fire and Ice 2
6 x 8″ mixed media painting by Holly Van Hart
Two canvases, each 6 x 4″, $325 for both
To purchase, email holly.vanhart@gmail.com or call 650 646 5590. Credit cards, checks, and PayPal accepted. The paintings arrive ready to hang. For VIP members, shipping is free in the continental U.S.