Visual Language Magazine Contemporary Fine Art Vol 2 no 10 October 2013

CFAI.co Colors On My Palette
Judy Batterson
http://www.judybetterson.com
http://www.cfai.co/colors-on-my-palette/judy-batterson
When did you realize you loved art and wanted to be ‘an artist’
I don’t remember a time, EVER, when I wasn’t an artist! Some
of my first memories were of drawing and coloring. When I was
in elementary school in Peoria, Illinois, we had art class only once
a week. I would get SO overwrought with anticipation before art
class my hands would shake. Once I got so excited waiting for
the time to arrive, I couldn’t stay in my desk and was apparently
jumping around and being disruptive. (me!) My punishment was,
oh no!, that I had to skip art class that week. Now, I get to paint
whenever I want (well, almost). My studio is full of wonderful
paints and brushes and canvases and light and color and all of the
things that make my art sing.
Who has been the greatest influence from your past to mentor you to this career
My other “vice,” besides painting, is reading. My father was an avid reader as well, and filled my childhood
home with all kinds of books. My earliest influence was the illustrations I pored over in those books.
We had a fabulous copy of The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám, packed with vibrant, rich vellum color plates.
I loved the combination of pure primary color and realistic subject matter elaborated with eastern decorative
themes. We had a copy of a turn-of-the-century period novel titled “A Mouse Is Born,” illustrated
by Aubrey Beardsley. His Art Nouveau blackline illustrations were inspirational. I loved the detail, the
contrast, and the fact that he never broke up a mass! We also had several huge old leather and gilt books
illustrated by Gustav Doré, Don Quixote, Paradise Lost, The Bible Gallery, Fontaine’s Fables, and more.
Doré’s ability to render realistic detail and use of line were a HUGE influence!! And the mood he could
set!!!... I could go on and on about how those book illustrations rang bells and blew whistles for me!
Who is your mentor today, or another artist you admire and why
About 12 years ago, after a long career of illustrating, I took a pastel painting class at our local art center.
My teacher was Bev Lee, an incredible portrait artist (and now my dear friend). Bev helped me to get out
of my illustrator’s headset and begin to think more like a painter. (I still have lots of work to do there.)
Most of my illustrations were blackline; very graphic and tight, with no color information. I had to start at
square one with color and color theory. Bev helped me to begin the process of loosening up and lightening
up. I was inspired to begin painting because I live in one of the most beautiful spots in the world: western
Colorado. I wanted to paint that beauty; as much of it as possible. Because of that, I have been inspired by
painters of the American West: from Charles Russell to Jill Soukup, with a myriad of others in between.
Bill Anton, Clyde Aspevig, G Russell Case, Ralph Oberg, Daniel Smith, Jim Wilcox... and the many other
painters of the American West who successfully strive to communicate the beauty of this incredible place
we are privileged to live in.
Who would you love to interview
I would like to visit with one of the great illustrators, like Maxfield Parrish or Arthur Rackham or Kaye
Neilson. I deeply admire their ability to render the landscapes of their imaginations with such a brilliantly
realistic approach.
Read more at http://www.cfai.co/colors-on-my-palette/judy-batterson
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