Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Leslie Lendvoy . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Leslie, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?
I never gave up on art and it never let me down. It has always been a place of comfort and sustenance… an escape from the stress or busyness of the human world around me. As a child growing up in a troubled family, I always found peace and contentment making art. As an adult, it continues to bring me solace and a sense of purpose. It takes me to a place where I explore what’s important to me. Often that place is Nature. Sometimes it’s painting a favourite pet or a special memory … but more often these days it’s a fleeting moment in Nature that calls to me. There is an urgency I feel, now more than ever, to capture that moment before it disappears somewhere between the changing light and shadows.
Painting fills me with gratitude. Gratitude for the gifts nature offers us and my hard earned time and ability to create. I gain sustenance from the act of creating, by focussing on what is important and staying with it until it’s finished. It takes refining, redoing, and perseverance despite times of self doubt and frustration. It’s a humbling act to paint but it is gratifying.
I begin with an inspiration and then step by step, sometimes tentatively, sometimes impulsively, I work on the image I want to convey until it fills my canvas and connects solidly with my heart and soul. Hopefully, when it’s done, it will connect with others as well. The act of creating art, from that initial often ephemeral inspiration into something tangible, hanging on the wall, is an accomplishment, not just for myself but as a gift to share with others. No matter how small or insignificant that accomplishment may be, it builds my confidence and ongoing commitment, brush stroke by brush stroke, canvas by canvas.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
My current focus as an artist:
It wasn’t until I retired that I found the time to seriously devote to my artwork.
I challenged myself by setting goals like entering local shows, then eventually national shows as my skill level improved. I took classes with artists whose work I admired, both nearby and abroad and found them all very generous with their help and advice. I learned to plein air paint and took my paints with me everywhere, even on trips to Europe and Mexico.
For the past ten years we spent the winter months travelling throughout the south west. We now have a home in the historic village of Tubac, Arizona where I have a studio and show in tours and local galleries there. The scenery is so different in the southwest compared to the Pacific Northwest where we spend the rest of the year on Vancouver Island, BC. Travelling forces me to emerge myself into the landscape that surrounds me and adjust my palette colours and compositions carefully so that I can capture the true character and feel of my subject. The challenge of changing landscapes has develop my skills and confidence through the years which in turn has resulted in my being awarded the honour of signature status (AFCA) with the Federation of Canadian Artists. It is extremely satisfying to be juried into top national shows and to receive awards for something I love to do.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Looking back, I think the three most important qualities or skills that helped me most on my artistic journey are my keen interest in learning, my persistence when things got difficult or challenging, and my ability to carve out time for my art from the busy demands of family and an active life. It’s been helpful talking to other artists about the similar challenges they face. There are also many online videos and podcasts devoted to emerging artists that are supportive, if one has the time. Nowadays being an artist means you have to do a lot of your own marketing and social media as well which I find frustrating as it takes me away from what I love best: the painting. There are so many hats one has to wear and so much new technology to keep up with.
All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?
Interestingly, becoming an artist later in life, after raising a family and having a thirty year career as a special education teacher, all the while living on a hobby farm with horses, cows, and chickens… I feel the pressure of time more than ever. I regret that I didn’t devote more time to my art when I was younger but I am grateful for the variety of paths my journey through life has taken me. I believe everything we do and experience, every smile, every mile, eventually comes out on the easel. If I start feeling overwhelmed with all there is to do, to make show deadlines or to catch up with established artists who have been at this journey many more decades than me, I just remind myself that I’m lucky I don’t need to paint for a living but rather for the joy of it.
And if my art brings joy to others …then that’s just one more thing I’m grateful for.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.leslielendvoy.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leslie.lendvoy.fine.art
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leslie.lendvoy.fine.art
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