Announcing my new
LEISA COLLINS ONLINE ART STORE
STORE OPENING SPECIAL: 25% off all items
for a limited time with coupon code LCA25OFF
I am very excited to “unveil” to you my new online store that includes over a hundred pieces of my art, most of which have never been viewed before.
A number of the pieces available in the store are original works and ALL those on display are also available as prints in various sizes.
As you know, architectural art is my artistic passion, so not surprisingly this is the theme of the majority of the work.
So please dive in and take a look at my art store and I would love to hear your feedback. Let me know what work you liked best, as well as what you think about the store in general. Is it user friendly for you? Can you navigate with ease? Do you collect art and does my work on the site interest you? Your feedback would be incredibly valuable to me.
I hate to deluge folks with emails and am creating a separate list for those interested in receiving store updates and being the first to see new work as it comes off my easel. Just let me know here.
Here is a little preview of some of the art you will find in my store.
ICONIC USA
My newest work is called Iconic USA and I have created my first three paintings, all of them on larger sized canvases. I am enjoying using mixed media with this series and showing historic detail that contrasts dramatically against areas of highly textured acrylic paint surfaces. My goal is for each piece to tell its’s own iconic architectural story. Here is an example below.
Entitled, The Painted Ladies of San Francisco, this famous row of historic Victorians somehow survived the devastating quake and fires of 1906 which destroyed 500 city blocks and killed 3,000 people. In this piece I wanted to show the intricate detail of these beautiful homes in contrast to the modern sprawl of downtown San Francisco today.
ARCHITECTURAL COLLAGE
With this new collage art, my goal is to blend some of my classic historic homes into unique backgrounds consisting of various fabric, tapestries and other favorite designs.
The piece below, for example, is entitled, English Tudor Home on Leather Collage. To me, Tudors conjure up life in the Middle Ages. Leather and lace and fine wine. Candlelight against warm hued brick and cold stone. Hence it seemed only fitting to integrate this English Tudor style home painting into time worn leather.
ARCHITECTURAL FUSION
I have always been fascinated with the integration of old and new architectural art forms. So often, the old historic building is torn down to make way for the new. I say, why not create an architectural fusion of the modern structure with the more traditional building. This is my message with this collection and the subjects depicted can be found in some of my favorite cities.
This painting is entitled Paris City Scene Old and New. I love spending time in Paris and with this piece I have attempted to capture the timeless fusion between the romantic contours of this historic building juxtaposed against the modern skyline of Downtown Paris, their angular forms glistening in the last rays of a setting sun.
LIFE IN THE CITY
And then there is my more traditional style.
Recently I asked myself the question: what makes city scenes so interesting to draw and paint? I concluded that it is the life — human and otherwise — that emulates from every corner of each urban setting. From that point I started to look a lot closer. I noticed dogs with their walkers, mothers with strollers, bird-prowling cats, bird-baths and bird houses and even spotted a “Valentine moment” one day. These are the very elements I have captured in my new Life in the City Collection of paintings. Here’s an example.
Entitled, Kids Playing Ball in Street, Alexandria VA, I passed by this delightful scene when I was living in Alexandria. It reminded me of my childhood. The Mom was calling from the porch to drag the boys from their baseball practice and was telling them to come for dinner.
FOUR SEASONS
This country farmhouse recently turned 100 years old and has been in the same family for four generations. Tucked away in the Virginia countryside, these watercolor paintings in four seasons honor each generation the home has provided shelter for. I created this collage in winter, spring, summer and fall to show a century of changing seasons.
Here is One Hundred Years of Seasons and this composition can be ordered as a large wall art print on stretched canvas.
LARGE CANVAS ART
I have a separate section on my website that includes larger original paintings on canvas or art that is suitable to to print onto a larger canvas.
The inspiration for European Street Scene by Moonlight was my travels to cities of Europe and the occasional moonlight walk through a deserted city street. The scene that night was quite magical, hence I created this artwork to commemorate that special moment.
I hope you have a better idea of my new work through this preview. Please feel free to go to my art store and check it out for yourself!
As mentioned above, I am creating a separate list for those interested in receiving store updates and being the first to see new work as it comes off my easel. Just let me know here.
Or if you would like to find out the background story of how my online art store evolved, then read on.
As you know, over the last few years my focus has been on travelling and painting portraits representing selected homes and historic buildings in all states across the USA.
While I certainly keep busy with a constant flow of one-off original custom house portrait projects — and that will not be changing –– like any artist, I am constantly inspired by the world around me and am always experimenting with new art mediums and different subject matter and consequently am creating new work.
But the sad fact is that around 75% of this body of work has ever made it into the light of day. That’s right, it hasn’t ever been seen by anyone — let alone made available for purchase. So earlier this year I embarked on a project to find and organize all these art pieces into one place. I unearthed a number of them that were hidden in boxes and art bags and other unlikely places in my home and studio. To my surprise they all added up to well over a hundred paintings. In other words, enough for an art gallery.
As you can imagine, I am far too footloose and fancy free as an artist to have any desire to be tied down to a brick and mortar gallery, so instead I have constructed this online art store to make this work available to everyone.
To remind you, a number of the pieces displayed in my art store are original works and all of them are available as prints in various sizes.
There again, if all you can think about is having me create your next commissioned art piece, no problem, as I love doing that too! Just send me a message here.
Thanks very much for your time and interest and Happy Holidays to you and your family and loved ones.
Cheers,
Leisa
