Artist Statement:

Color and mark-making as a language of human expression is essential to my work. I’m fascinated by what emerges from the physical and emotive act of painting itself. Dashes of paint, gestural strokes, and lyrical, painterly marks tell a story— orchestrated by movement, intuition and the shifting of time.

Painting has become a metaphor for my perception of life. The metaphors that I explore are inspired by the tender relationships in my life, and the wonder and despair that I experience as a woman, mother, working artist, and humble observer of the world. Working primarily in the mode of intuitive abstraction over the last 10 years has allowed me to discover how a painting can create space for both an understanding of life and the valuable admission of not knowing.

My approach to abstract painting is informed by my background in both landscape and figurative painting—I remain fascinated by light, atmosphere, and the almost-human gestural qualities visible in nature, such as the way tree branches appear to lunge outward, as if yearning to touch and connect.

As an artist, I have found that since becoming a mother, my intuitive senses have heightened, along with a curiosity to move beyond literal forms. This recognition has clarified my desire to express joy, wonder, and a contented unknowing about life. I’m compelled by the emergence of ambiguity, and the trust that becomes necessary to hold and engage with its mystery. The practice of art-making, like the human experience itself, is at times messy, intense, and bewildering. And yet, the ability to stay engaged with these uncomfortable moments, eventually rewards us with the discovery of meaning and beauty and the pleasure of astonishment. I’m interested in the willingness to tolerate these necessary phases of discomfort in the not-knowing. It is this uncertainty that I embrace while painting intuitively, allowing me to relinquish control and make way for a painting to become a deeper, poetic space and dialogue between me, the material, and the viewer.

Bio:

Cameron Schmitz is an oil painter based in Western Massachusetts. She received her Masters of Fine Arts in Painting from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and Bachelors of Fine Arts in Painting & Drawing from the University of New Hampshire, in addition to completing studies at Studio Arts Centers International in Florence, Italy. After growing up in Greenwich, CT and living in various areas of New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Vermont, Schmitz eventually made her way to Western Massachusetts where she now resides, along with her husband and their blended family of 5 children. She maintains her full-time painting studio in Greenfield, MA and teaches oil painting workshops at River Gallery School in Brattleboro, VT and Snow Farm in Williamsburg, MA.

Schmitz’s work has been featured at institutions that include Kyoto Seika University, Emory University, Fitchburg Art Museum, Northern Arizona University Art Museum, Green Mountain College, and The National Arts Club. Her paintings are included in permanent collections that include New York-Presbyterian Hospitals, UVM Medical Center, Lahey Medical Centers, Wells Fargo and the Almoosa Specialist Hospital in Saudi Arabia. Notable press includes spotlight features in Fresh Paint Magazine and the featured guest on a two-part series on the popular podcast, Savvy Painter.

Press Release