About the artist

Laura Griffith was born with an artistic nature. Her early life in New York was enriched by that City’s great cultural institutions. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin as an English major; however, her favorite classes were art history.  After a year of study in Paris, she spent two years teaching first graders in Manhattan where she found special pleasure in presenting art to those youngsters.

She then moved to the West Coast to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts (summa cum laude) from the California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland, California. Up to this point, Laura had always been accustomed to urban life, but the need for studio space prompted her to move to the countryside of Sonoma. She found a suitable location adjoining a Chardonnay vineyard, and there she built her studio and planted a small orchard.

The orchard proved to be a source of inspiration. In the past, Laura had been attracted to classical still life painting — compositions of flowers, fruit, vases, and other artifacts. As she mastered technique, her style evolved. She found the fruit itself, with its intricate shadow, reflection and light, to be the essence of her vision. The pears, apples and persimmons from her orchard had much more personality than those from the supermarket, and Laura focused on drawing out their elegance and drama. With the spotlight on the fruit, the artificial objects became extraneous.

As her aesthetic emphasized the fruit, the scale of the paintings increased, and the backdrops darkened, to create a suitable stage for the lively images to perform.

Laura Griffith’s elegant oil paintings hang in major collections around the world.

Education:

• University of Wisconsin, Bachelor of Arts, 1969
• California College of Art, BFA with high distinction, 1982
• Academy of Arts College, San Francisco, 1991

Artist’s Statement:

“From the genre of classical still life, my work has evolved toward a contemporary, joyful vision where art belongs in the life of the individual. I see the world in vibrant color and I strive to put that color onto canvas. My vision is intense interaction on a grand scale, in clear light and color, strong shadows and complex reflections, executed for a clean, pared-down presentation.

Magnifying the scale of the ordinary can glorify it to the extraordinary. The aggrandized format promotes detail that is abstracted, fanciful and contemporary as opposed to literal representation. As the scale ascends in importance, traditional still life props fall away as unneeded supports. The fruit stands alone; the overall effect uncluttered, graceful and exalted.

My intent is to create art that people enjoy. Art that is positive and bold, elevating, while lean and spare, to be easily incorporated into the living and working environments of the modern collector.”