Marjorie Thompson — The Joy Project

Continuing the Art of Play
June 15, 2022

Artist: Marjorie Thompson

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Seattle artist, Marjorie Thompson, grew up on the doorstep of the Pacific Northwest’s rainforest and pacific coast beaches. Nature and its magical inspiration has been a part of her artwork throughout her lifetime. She grew up with art in the studio of her father, a well-known Pacific Northwest artist. Marjorie painted under his guidance throughout her childhood. Creativity has been a part of her life since this early beginning and has taken several forms along her artistic journey. She was a jewelry artist for 10 years before returning to painting in 2011. She has found expression in her artwork through several mediums including encaustic, oil and cold wax and most recently acrylic painting.

Artist Statement:

My work has always been inspired by nature: organic forms, currents, flow, cycles, seasons, land, water, sky, and the living things that dwell in those spaces. The work is about color, line, texture, nature and seeing the world from a different perspective. Whether micro or macro, my intention is to provide an opportunity to be part of a dialog with nature and the flora and fauna that surround us. The landscapes in my paintings are imaginary yet solidly grounded to my local surroundings. I call on the experiences and images from the archives of my visual diary. The images for these paintings weave and intermingle in my mind and present themselves as a mélange of overlapping histories. They are inner landscapes inspired by outer landscapes. By taking away the 'realness' of a place, the essence of it begins to surface. Inspirations from daily walks and hikes come together in my studio as a finished painting. I invite this constant conversation with nature which allows my art process to change and grow in order to keep the conversation alive.

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Podcast - How Breakthroughs Occur

Warm-up + Project:

Find inspiration, a photo, a backyard vista, a lake or pond view, and get into nature!

How does it make you feel? Try to express this in your work. Let's take our inspiration from Marjorie Thompson's beautiful nature paintings.

Tools that you may wish to explore: a palette knife, a tool to drag wet paint (the edge of an old credit card, or the edge of a thick piece of cardboard).

Pay some attention to layers and overlapping.

Let's experiment, loosen up and have fun making abstract landscapes!

Forest