The Things We Know
The Things We Know
Amy Arnston
Artist's Statement
Growing up in the Great Lakes region, water has always been a powerful symbol for me. It symbolizes both birth and death, both change and the eternal. This painting speaks to loss.
This large watercolor painting of Lake Superior is shown at sunrise. A new day dawns with unusually warm colors superimposed on the Lake, symbolizing climate change. The colors are chosen from my visit to the Bahamas where the color of the water is (currently) very different from Lake Superior. In the distance, you can see birds migrating North. Many of our flora and fauna will need to move north for survival, time permitting. The painting is titled "The things we know", based on Aldo Leopold's statement that "We only grieve for what we know".
As an artist, author and art professor, my commitment to painting is enriched by a respect for art/design history, and the region I live in. Abstract color, shape and texture are an underpinning to all my realistic paintings of water, as are a sense of place and time.
Biography
Arntson grew up on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan. Her
father and grandfather worked for a time on the coal fired car
ferries that crossed the Lake. Her paintings of water surfaces
are a result of long familiarity with the Great Lakes region.
Her work celebrates the beauty of the lakes and demonstrates a
commitment to a healthy climate.
A Professor Emerita from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Arntson taught art and design for 22 years. She is the author of several textbooks on design, and has exhibited her work and given presentations on perception in several countries in North, South and Central America, Europe and Asia. She is now a full-time artist.