FEATURED ARTIST

Artist SPOTLIGHT

LORENA MALM

Local artists invigorate the community with thoughtful, creative pieces. Each issue, Starved Rock Country Magazine and Starved Rock Country Community Foundation are partnering to highlight artists and their work.

orena Malm’s imagination plays a big role in her artwork. For example, last year she won a second-placed ribbon at The Next Picture Show Gallery in Dixon for her use of copper tape and crushed eggshells. She also hopes to challenge herself this year by finding an “avenue to which I will be able to teach others to use their imagination in creating abstract art.”

Malm is a self-taught, Starved Rock Country-area artist who uses oil paint, her iPad and a variety of other materials to create abstract artwork, both on the canvas and digitally.

A paint-by-number oil set sparked her love for art at 9 years old. “As I painted each day, I learned patience was not something I had, but must develop, and my perfectionism became obvious for the first time, bringing with it a sense of desire to go ‘outside the lines,’” she says.

Malm recently (in 2018) began what she calls “the emerging process” into an artist community. She has presented exhibits at local arts organizations like Open Space Art Gallery & Studios in Ottawa and participated in Princeton Art District’s First Friday Market, among others. “The amount of support has been tremendous,” she says.

Describing her artwork, Malm says her imagery comes from experiences, memories, emotions and, occasionally, dreams. “I embed my emotions into the art, with intention to present connection to the viewer, that they too will feel emotion and connected to an otherwise abstract tangible,” she explains.

DETAILS OF LORENA MALM’S WORK

To purchase or learn more about her creations, visit her website, lmalm-arts.square.site. 1. Melt Down/Rising Seas: oil paint and cold wax on canvas, 24.5x12. Inspired by an Educational Media Reviews Online article, Malm writes, “Two different cultures a half world away from each other are feeling the effects of climate change. While those in the Arctic lose an ice pack that supports the wildlife they depend upon for food, people in the South Pacific must deal with a rising sea level brought on by the melting ice. Both are forced to adapt to the consequences of a practice over which they have no control: the burning of fossil fuels.” 2. Abstract Strength: oil paint and mica powder on canvas, 11x14. “People’s resilience having gone through tragedy in their life, and the struggles endured on a regular basis, keep them from being tossed around in a whirlwind of chaos,” writes Malm. “The more difficult the trials, the more strength they give to their resilience. The movement in ‘Abstract Strength’ represents the whirlwind and resilience.” 3. In the Distance: oil paint and mica powder on canvas, 12x24. “Objects seen in the distance are admired and desired, just out of reach with obstacles blocking acquisition,” writes Malm. “Endurance, determination and focus will bring success.” 4. Orb Art 2741: digital composition created on the iPad. Writes Malm: “Orbs are storage vessels I create to store whatever emotion I may be feeling at the time of creating.”

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ABOUT THE ARTIST Lorena Malm is a self-taught artist who strives “to share with my viewers a world of beauty through art.” She has exhibitions scheduled in 2022 throughout Starved Rock Country; learn more at lmalm-arts.square.site.