Art Blog

20Sep 2023 by Leisa

House portraits of childhood homes and keeping special memories alive . . .

Turning a battered old photo into a work of art No matter how insurmountable the task is, I hate to turn away a person who needs my help in capturing their family home . . . and all those treasured memories. Their goal is to memorialize the house the way it looked when they, their siblings, or parents, as the case may be, grew up there. As a house portrait will be in the family for generations to come, it's important to me to honor the true spirit of that special home. The circumstances are always different, but in many cases the home has now been sold to new owners and no longer looks anything like it did in the past. Or worse still, the family home, with all those…

10Sep 2023 by Leisa

The love of front porches and watercolor porch paintings

House Portraits, News

Watercolor portrait of a welcoming porch. . . One of the things I love most when I create watercolor paintings of homes, is to include welcoming front porches. I always take the time to add the unique details of each porch: the furniture, the bird feeder, wind chimes and more. From time to time, I am also asked to create commissioned watercolor porch paintings. If you investigate the past, front porches were the most welcoming feature of homes for more than 150 years – whether grand wrap-around verandas, second-floor balconies or simple covered sitting and resting spaces. They were also the treasured gathering place for families and friends. Way back in the early 1800’s, Andrew Jackson Downing – who was thought to be one of the founders of American landscape…

16Aug 2023 by Leisa

Summer Gardens and House Portrait Give-Away!

House Portraits, News

While summer color fades. . . a summer house portrait lasts a lifetime We enjoy life's garden. Life is the flower for which love is the honey. -- Victor Hugo I hope you are enjoying the magic of this time of warmth, color and growth. Being that I have now painted portraits of homes and historic buidings in every state across the USA, I can say that a pretty garden, lush trees and and lovely landscapng, makes all the difference when creating a portait of a…

10Jul 2023 by Leisa

Visit my new sunroom studio in historic Benton Park!

News

Open Studio THIS SUNDAY, JULY 16TH: 1 - 4 PM --- 2915 Missouri Ave, St. Louis * Iconic St. Louis paintings and my Love Me Don’t Leave Me series of STL abandoned buildings on display * Slide show of my greater St. Louis house portrait collection (covering 30 areas and counting. . .) * All are welcome! Relaxed and causal affair. Light refreshments served. Any questions: email leisa@leisacollins.com or call (703) 598-7360

13Jun 2023 by Leisa

My growing international house portrait collection

House Portraits, News

The Power of Word of Mouth . . . Since I began capturing the personalities of architectural subjects in pen and watercolor a decade ago, I have truly come to appreciate the power of word of mouth. Nothing makes we prouder to getting referrals from my clients and I would like to thank all of you who have helped spread the word about my work. As you know, my focus has been on architectural paintings of homes and historic buildings in all 50 states across the USA, and indeed my coffee table book, Hand Painted Homes: An Artist’s Pen and Watercolor Journey Across America, documents that story. However, I realized the other day that through word of mouth alone, I have now created over 20 commissioned paintings of interesting homes…

12Apr 2023 by Leisa

NEWSFLASH! My first St. Louis Art show!

News

seen & found art show AND YOU ARE WARMLY INVITED! I am honored to join forces with three wonderful Benton Park artists, Don Murphy, Phyllis Terry Friedman and Scott Bean for this one-day pop up show on Sunday, April 23, between 11 - 7 pm with a wine&cheese reception between 6 - 7 pm. We all share a passion to amplify and celebrate some of St. Louis’ hidden gems. Featured media includes painting, prints, assemblages and photography. Scott Bean, paintings/prints “I love wild shadows, old architecture, designed spaces like parks as well as industrial scenes. Discovering St. Louis has been great for my art making. Nighttime corners of Soulard, twilight in Benton Park, the storefronts of Cherokee Street have all inspired my work for this show. I am glad…

11Apr 2023 by Leisa

Latest painting in my Abandoned Building Series

Historic Perservation, New Art

Introducing the 4th in my Love Me Don't Leave Me Series entitled "Hyde Park Elegance" Tucked away on Breman Avenue in the Hyde Park neighborhood of St. Louis, this elegant Victorian looks forelorny across a sea of lush greens. Today the park is still beautiful but once it was the talk of the town with its gazebo, fountain, stocked lake, service building and playgrounds. The wealthy and elite owned these fine houses right on the park, and this home, with its welcoming porch, was one of the earliest and without doubt one of the finest. [caption id="attachment_34372" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] Love Me Don't Leave Me entitled "Hyde Park Elegance"[/caption] So many stories and images flash before me as I look at her old tired bones, imagining those who lived and loved…

04Apr 2023 by Leisa

A Greek Revival treasure saved from demolition in the final hour

Historic Perservation, New Art, News

One of the gems of St. Louis architecture I have been concentrating lately on my Love Me Don’t Leave Me series in order to shine the light on the plight of abandoned buildings, many of which are now sadly teetering on the brink of final death and destruction. However, I decided I needed a break to put my attention onto creating a painting of a stunning historic building that instead has a happy ending. It was saved from demolition in the final hour, and now, 60 years later it serves as a house museum in St. Louis. Allow me to introduce to you my latest painting, the Chatillon-DeMenil House, one of the gems of St. Louis architecture! [caption id="attachment_34298" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] Chatillon-DeMenil House[/caption] Although the Chatillon-DeMenil House sits right in…

03Apr 2023 by Leisa

Introducing another piece in my abandoned building series

Historic Perservation, House Portraits, New Art, News

Happy Spring my friends! It is no secret that I am passionate about saving historic buildings. I consider them works of art and after all, architecture is about people. Our built history is created by people and it is people that give life to brick and mortar. Instead, one of the key reasons I created my coffee table book, Hand Painted Homes - An Artist's Pen and Watercolor Journey Across America, (which I released in 2021) was to raise awareness of the fact that hundreds of historic homes and buildings are being torn down every day in this country. I decided to document beautiful vintage structures before it was too late. Sadly, many of the homes that I feature in my book, no longer stand today. Last August I moved…

03Mar 2023 by Leisa

My Latest Historic Preservation Award goes to . .

Leisa Collins Historic Preservation Award, New Art

Awardees Jenifer and Ivan Garcia! As Jenifer and Ivan Garcia, the founders of Garcia Properties, state on their website, they formed their enterprise with one driving desire -- to leave whatever they touched a little better. Two decades later, after renovating and otherwise bringing back to life almost one hundred individual properties across St. Louis, they have indeed kept to their word. The award presentation took place on May 23, in the upstairs lounge of the Golden Hoosier Restaurant and Bar on South Kingshighway in South St. Louis. The Alderman for the 10th Ward, Joe Vollmer, joined me in honoring the Garcias. [caption id="attachment_33858" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] Unveiling the award painting to Jenifer and Ivan Garcia[/caption] [caption id="attachment_33859" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] 10th Ward Alderman, Joe Vollmer, joined me in honoring the Garcias.[/caption]…

Art Blog

Leisa Collins Art Newsletter Sign Up