#hashtagartmag @nanette_fluhr #figurepainting #portraitpainting #contemporaryrealism
#statement
I approach each painting as an opportunity to create a timeless work of art that captures the subject’s true essence.
#bio
With over two decades of professional experience, Nanette Fluhr has created portraits that hang in public and private collections worldwide. She has received honors and awards from The Artist’s Magazine, The Catherine Lorilland Wolfe Art Club, The Art Renewal Center, The Portrait Society of America, and the School of Visual Arts, where she studied the techniques of the Old Masters under John Frederick Murray. During this time, she painted museum-quality replicas at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Her work has been displayed at The MEAM Museum in Barcelona, The Salmagundi Club, The Butler Institute of American Art, The National Arts Club, and The Wausau Museum of Contemporary Art, as well as in a six-museum exhibit on contemporary American realism in China.
Replica of Regnault's "Salome", 2020 Oil on Linen 63 × 40 in 160 × 101.6 cm
While my primary focus is commissioned portraiture, I also enjoy more personal work. For commissions, I will first meet with the client to discuss the painting and determine the size, scope, and mood. The next step is the photography session where a variety of poses and lighting combinations will be explored. Ideally, I prefer to work from life; however, I understand clients’ time restraints do not always make this possible. Therefore I tend to work from a combination of photographs and life, selecting and emphasizing what best captures my subject’s individuality. In my studio, I use the photographs to make decisions about the pose and expression of the portrait. Numerous color studies are prepared to determine composition and color harmony. I then present a small compositional color study to give the client a sense of what the finished painting will look like. After the study is approved, I will paint a head study from life to record the subtle nuances of skin tone and hair, which cannot be accurately
#process
captured by color photography. I then paint the oil portrait in my studio working from these references. Each portrait is painted on fine Belgian linen canvas using the highest quality materials available to ensure permanence. When not doing commissioned work, my process is more free-flowing. While I still create studies, I rely more on my intuition. It’s important for me to have a plan, but to not be so attached to it that I can’t change my mind if I find a better way to accomplish my goal. I’m always seeking the best method to express my idea visually and impact a viewer in a meaningful way. Regardless of what or for whom I’m creating, I spend a lot of time on the picture-making aspects such as coming up with an idea that will stand the test of time and arranging the shapes of the painting into a pleasing visual pattern. When you look at great art, that is the one common thread: they are all designed beautifully and have staying power.
#goal
My ultimate goal for my artwork is to utilize the visual techniques of the Old Masters to go beyond a mere likeness; my aim is to capture a life, for all time. It is the challenge of creating a faithful likeness of my sitter, which I firmly believe must include an understanding of each subject’s
persona, that I find most compelling. I approach each painting as an opportunity to try to discover the truth of an individual’s essence. I am excited to keep growing as a painter; I never want to stop expanding my skills or creating meaningful and lasting art.
#breakthrough
My breakthrough piece was a painting called “Portrait of My Grandfather”. One of the most memorable people I’ve ever met, my grandfather was a very direct man who looked you straight in the eye and told you exactly what he thought. I tried to capture that distinctness with a straightforward look and probing eyes. I used strong lighting on that painting known as chiaroscuro, which translates in Italian to “light + dark”. This set up a dynamic composition with deep shadows, creating the illusion of a three dimensional form on a two dimensional surface. Throughout the process I enjoyed spending time with him and studying his face, character, and all that shaped him into the man he was. “Portrait of My Grandfather” was also the first work I ever entered into an art show. When I submitted to the Suburban Art League’s
exhibit in New York, I was unsure if I was even ready to show my work publicly, so you can imagine my surprise and joy when I learned I had won their Award of Excellence. That gave me the confidence to enter the painting into larger contests such as the Artist’s Magazine national competition, where it placed among the top 10 out of 2,300 and was featured in their magazine. More recently, it was displayed in the America China Oil Painting Artists League’s historic contemporary American realism six-city national museum tour in China. While standing in the World Art Museum in Beijing for the reception, I looked at the painting and remembered the special experience of its creation and the time I shared with my grandfather. It gives me immense satisfaction to know that this portrait has preserved his memory for future generations.
#community
I would say that working with an art community has helped my art career tremendously! I am very grateful for the opportunity to show alongside some of the most respected artists of contemporary realism. Thanks to PoetsArtists, my work has been exhibited
at the MEAM Museum in Barcelona and I have participated in wonderful online shows and publications including Adorn Me, Familial Muse, and Ambivalence. My most recent work, painted for Creator and Muse, was later featured in Fine Art Connoisseur.
BIO HIGHLIGHTS Work is available through 33 Contemporary and Artsy.
2020 shows Ambivalence, 33 Contemporary Gallery, Chicago, IL
Allied Artists of America 107th Annual Exhibition, Online Creator and Muse, 33 Contemporary Gallery
Collections Rockland County Courthouse, New City, NY Suffolk County Courthouse, Riverhead, NY
Barron's Educational Series, Hauppauge, NY
First National Bank of New York, Melville, NY
Pride Solvents and Chemicals, Co, Avenel NJ Queens Library Gallery Queens, NY Temple Beth El, Huntington, NY
Collection of Follender Robotics Center, Boys Town Jerusalem Dr. Abraham Franklin, Mexico City, Mexico Sondra and Ezra Rapoport, New York, NY Leslie and John Hardy, Harwich, MA
Elizabeth and John Mullan, Pacific Palisades, CA Bob Podesta, Virginia Beach, VA
INVITATIONAL MEMBERSHIPS Honorary Member of ACOPAL (America China Oil Painting Artists League) Elected member of Allied Artists of America
Associate with Distinction, American Women Artists
PAST & PRESENT MEMBERSHIPS Portrait Society of America Cecilia Beaux Forum
Oil Painters of America Art Renewal Center PoetsArtists
Art League of Long Island Huntington Arts Council
National Museum of Women In the Arts Salmagundi Club
Connecticut Society of Portrait Artists