Tamsen Armstrong

A good piece of advice I once heard was: ‘Don’t paint the extraordinary, elevate the ordinary.’ In other words, look for places and things that might be overlooked and bring some joy into them. I also like to think my paintings tell a story, so I am up for anything and everything that I can make a connection with and say something interesting about. It could be vintage shoes or a line of ducks walking to their pond. My goal as an artist is to observe these kinds of ordinary subjects intimately, paint what I see honestly and hope the resulting images will resonate with the viewer. My landscapes, still lifes, animals, and people are painted using oils with a nod toward the California Impressionist style.  I like my brush to be loose and expressive and I enjoy adding the last dab of paint that captures the light. Setting up still lifes in my studio inspires me, as well as traveling and painting outdoors.