Author Archives: marciahillart

An Art Retreat

Posted on November 18, 2025 by marciahillart

A couple of weeks ago I did a little three-day art retreat with an artist friend. We were at my home. I cleared out part of a room that had good light and we set up our art stuff, brought … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged abstract painting, art, art retreat, artist, artistic decisions, changing color in art, color in art, composition in art, creativity, painting, pastel painting, pushing color, values in art | 2 Comments

She’s baaaack!

Posted on April 9, 2025 by marciahillart

It has been a slow few painting years for me. In 2022, I fell down a flight of stairs and it took several months to recover from the concussion. In 2023, I was pulled over by a dog eager to … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Two New Abstracts

Posted on February 27, 2024 by marciahillart

Where do abstracts come from? Damned if I know. I know where most representational painting comes from: I see something that strikes me and even if I change it, I am trying to convey the thing that called to me … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged abstract, abstract art, abstract painting, abstracts, art, color contrast, color harmony, inspiration, painting | 5 Comments

Nocturnes

Posted on January 20, 2022 by marciahillart

Night. Our limited vision at night colors the concept for humans. It can have an edge – or more than an edge – of fear: the unseen assailant, the “things that go bump in the night.” Night’s darkness offers a … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged expressing feeling in art, feeling of night in art, landscape painting, Nocturnes, nocturnes in pastel, painting night scenes | 3 Comments

The Emotional Sky

Posted on September 24, 2021 by marciahillart

During the pandemic, my art changed completely. I painted symbolic images about the pandemic. I painted a few desolate landscapes and a couple of abstracts. Then I laid fallow for a bit, unsure of what came next. But I have … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged clouds as light carriers, composition, emotions in painting, feeling and sky, light in painting, painting skies, skies as abstracts, skies as emotions, struggles with painting | 3 Comments

Self-Portrait

Posted on March 18, 2021 by marciahillart

I’ve never painted a self-portrait. I guess I never saw the point, really, although I know of an artist who painted a number of them because he himself was the easiest and least expensive model he could get. However, I … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Landscape Contrasts

Posted on February 1, 2021 by marciahillart

Landscape may seem like an ” it is what it is” kind of subject, but in fact it can be remarkably expressive. The subject matter is part of this: What is the weather? How is the light? Is it stark … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged desolate art, expressing feeling in art, hopeful art, landscape, Landscape as expression, Use of color in art | Leave a comment

Art as a Political Act

Posted on December 31, 2020 by marciahillart

When George Floyd was killed – yet another Black man dead at the hands of the police – I thought a lot about this country’s reaction to racial differences. We have struggled throughout our entire history with this evil. It … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 8 Comments

Pandemic Art #2

Posted on May 13, 2020 by marciahillart

I have been continuing to make pandemic art. I am finding that most of these paintings require a lot more preparation than my usual paintings do. I’ll give a couple of examples as I post them here. “Pandemic 6” Much … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged conveying danger in art, coronavirus paintings, expressive painting, intuitive painting, painting preparation, pandemic art, pandemic paintings | 3 Comments

Pandemic Art

Posted on April 6, 2020 by marciahillart

In less than two months, our world has changed dramatically: We now live in the time of a plague. Many have said that the world will never be the same, and it is my fervent hope that humanity in general, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged coronavirus art, expressive painting, intuitive painting, meaning in art, pandemic paintings | 3 Comments

	marciahillart on An Art Retreat
	Frank Peterson on An Art Retreat
	Wren Grace on She’s baaaack!
	jamie miller on Two New Abstracts
	Gail on Two New Abstracts