Lynn Sisler
Mixed media artist
I create art because doing so allows me to frequent the space between scientific exploration and matters of the heart. These two realms seem juxtaposed, but I find that their crossover is so common that I believe they are one and the same. My artistic process is much like the scientific method, entailing careful observation, consideration of perspective, hypothesizing, and then trying things out visually as a sort of experiment. Through regular journaling, notes, and sketches, I find inspiration in my own curiosity, discovering wonder in the intricacies and connections of the natural world. My thoughts connect together like the pieces of a puzzle to become a larger idea that I intuitively feel is important for me to portray. I place these experiences, thoughts, metaphors, and symbolic visuals into my compositions, narrating a story. I find these multiple connections are part of a larger picture, branching out as one path leads to another and another, chronicling abundant tales. Most often, drawn to the alluring and beautiful subject of animals whom I refer to as “fairies”, I have found that their spirits represent for me poignant lessons about what it means to be human. I use the beauty of textured materials, including wood, acrylic mediums, wax, and collaged paper to add depth and to reflect the layered meanings within my work. When various mediums come together in the compositions, they compliment and enhance each other organically. Color is the muse, and I choose the hues viscerally. Often I will layer paper with paint and acrylic mediums, then use charcoal, ink, and oil pastel to draw or etch into the surface. The layers become reminiscent of ghostly histories, primitive, yet powerful narratives of my psyche, and the spiritual energy that flows around and through all of us.
Lynn Sisler was born in Rockford, Illinois, lived in Decatur, Georgia for 20+ years, and now lives and works in the Pioneer Valley area of western Massachusetts. Sisler works predominantly in mixed media paintings, inspired by natural history and the innate beauty of unusual animals and birds to create personal narratives using various materials including acrylic paints, wax, oil pastel, and paper collage on wood. These materials convey an organic depth of layers, reminiscent of ghostly histories, spiritual energy and glimpses of the artist’s psyche. She also creates clay sculptures that have been fired through Raku, outdoor pit firing, and a variety of other glazing techniques. Sisler is currently working on an installation of 100 specimen birds. Lynn Sisler completed a BFA in painting and a minor in Art History from Northern Illinois University in 1991. She has had pieces chosen for several group shows; notably she received the Special Merit Award in Light, Space, Time Gallery’s Animals Exhibition in 2013 and who’s work titled Before You Were Born contributed to The Satellite Collective’s Telephone: An International Experiment in 2015. Her first solo show in the Pioneer Valley, titled Migration Stories and Other Curious Lore, opened August 2016 at the ECA+ gallery in Easthampton, Massachusetts.
Awards/Honors 2015 Artist in Satellite Collective’s Telephone show which was featured in the NY Times and on NPR. 2013 Animals Art Exhibition, Special Merit Award. www.lightspacetime.com 1989 Received Second Place in Northern Illinois University Student Show, Jack Olson Gallery. Group and Solo Exhibitions 2017 Migration Stories and Other Curious Lore. Art Stop, Springfield Cultural Arts Center. NEPR building, Springfield, MA While Art Is Still Legal. Elusie Gallery, Easthampton , MA Halcyon Days (upcoming, October). Elusie Gallery, Easthampton, MA 2016 Migration Stories and Other Curious Lore. ECA+ Gallery, Easthampton, MA. IS 183 Art School of the Berkshires Faculty Show. Williamstown, MA. 2015 MAC 650 Gallery, Middletown, CT. A Celebration of Birds . 2015 Verum Ultimum Gallery, Portland, OR. Passages. 2015 Satellite Collective, Online Exhibition. Telephone. 2013 Light, Space, and Time Online Gallery. Animals. 2013 The Cube Gallery, Atlanta, GA. The Book of Saints. 2012 Kelly Enzor and Lynn Sisler, Recent Paintings. 2011 Farm to Loft Gallery, Decatur, GA. Portraits. 1999 Café Montmartre, Madison, WI. Ground Zero, Madison, WI. 1996 Nexus Gallery, Atlanta, GA. Summer Olympic local group show. 1989-90 Northern Illinois Student Shows. Visual Arts Building, Jack Olson Gallery. 1989 Solo Work, Northern Illinois University Student Union.
