Laila M. Campbell Artist's Statement

I am inspired to paint with strong colors and lines to communicate my love of our Okanagan Valley. We are passengers in time, swaying through the days and seasons and ever changing surroundings. My sweeping colors evoke sun, wind, storm and light. The wonderful color patterns in Nature inspire me to capture moments in time as they sweep across the south Okanagan. My artistic nature was nurtured with the influence of my mother, Minn Sjolseth, a well established painter and portrait artist. As well as being a very successful and recognized painter in her own right, she for some years owned a commercial art gallery in downtown Vancouver. The succession of artists and other interesting people I was introduced to left me with wide ranging artistic impressions. Shape, color, texture, and the interpretation of the natural world and human experience came naturally to me, as I reflected the creative environments. I have always related to the natural world and I have always been fascinated by the integration of color and texture. Either by incorporating texture in the underpaintings of my works, or by the application of built up mixed media, I find my art often takes on a life of its own where the shapes and textures almost tell me what direction I am going to be taking. I have been fortunate to live in several strikingly different environments: the seacoast around Vancouver, the mountain valleys of Pemberton, the powerful Cascade Mountains in Manning Park, the more muted Thompson River benchlands, and since 1993, the marvellous Okanagan Valley with its special lakes and hills. The powerful attraction I feel for the Okanagan landscape is expressed in strong colors and flowing lines using a lengthy process of under painting to capture the depth and tones of the ever changing landscapes, lakes and skies. My subjects include dancers who often appear in celebrations of life. Contemplative figures reflect on the fragility and beauty of the habitat surrounding us. I feel that in many of my works I am trying to catch a fleeting moment, a pause, a reflection, a discovery of joy and wonder. Recently my works have become lyrical expressions of the human figure using bright pure colour and line as portrayed in my dance and celebration works. In others is the love and caring as portrayed in my series with mothers, children, families and friends sharing various quiet moments. Whimsical works include quail within the Okanagan landscape and are both joyful and reflective of our priceless natural habitat.

Page Updated February 14th 2012