Meet Tammy Lawless | Artist and Nurse

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tammy Lawless and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tammy, why did you pursue a creative career?
I have always loved the arts. As a child, I loved to draw and would spend hours drawing what was around me whether it was my grandfather’s boat leaned against a tree or my own hands and feet. I sold my first drawing in elementary school. I also played the piano so my hands stayed pretty busy! When I went to register for college, I chose Fine Arts but would change my major to nursing in my junior year of college. Nursing was pragmatic and I knew I could pay my bills with a nursing degree. I do not look back and regret my years of nursing because it was a career that helped others. I worked as a surgical intensive care nurse for greater than twenty years. I still nurse part-time in an endoscopy center. I am an oil painter and my work examines the breakdown of light into colors and shapes; however, even as a nurse, I was evaluating light. I would stand at the doorway and peer into the room before visiting hours to see what the family would see first and adjust the light so that it was calming for the patient and family members. I was able to pursue my art career after my children were grown. I returned to college and completed my Bachelor of Fine Arts and then a Master of Arts and Master of Fine Arts. I taught one semester as an adjunct and spend the rest of my time painting, entering juried exhibitions and nursing part-time. Sometimes you have to create the life you want and I have been blessed to have a supporting husband, children, and family.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am fascinated by light which is why I chose the name “Fascination” for my graduate exhibition. I love the contrasts created by bright light and the distortions in reflected light. I see light in terms of colors and shapes creating a magical environment. My oil paintings are colorful, playful, evocative. They are metaphors of joy, celebration, revelry and triumph. I begin with a still-life (which I photograph) using colorful, transparent or reflective objects. Then I crop the photographs and saturate them with color on a photoshop edit and begin painting. There is always a hint of the recognizable object existing in an intangible, fanciful environment. Color takes on a life of its own and the object becomes lost in the color and shapes. There is a child-like game of hide and seek that takes place. One of the reasons I paint in this way is to challenge preconceived perceptions. It requires being able to see something new every time the painting is viewed. Color becomes a vehicle for movement within the painting. Translucent layers push through to a place beyond the painting referencing an eternal or immortal perspective. Time is captured in a continuous “now” as past, present and future exist simultaneously. The colors recall the innocence of childhood like a new box of crayons. The complex compositions remind us of the complicated pathways of adulthood.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
One of my favorite days is a trip to The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth for brunch/lunch in the museum cafe (which is amazing) and an afternoon in the museum. Then a hop over to the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
When my husband took a job in Texas while we were living in Orlando, Florida I was distraught! We did not have family here and I spent a great deal of time alone. He encouraged me to take a class so I enrolled at the University of Texas. He has been the greatest cheerleader through all the years of classes and research papers and painting furiously on my days off. During graduate school, I would spend the weekends in the studio and he became quite the chef. I’ve missed those weekend dinners since I graduated! He continues to help me with materials and shipping paintings. He is probably my biggest fan! My oldest son, Trey, had already completed graduate and law school before me so he kept me focused and reminded me over and over I could do this! My youngest son, Joseph, has always been quick to steer me to become a little more abstract in my work to stay relevant. I was fortunate to have great professors at the University of Texas who pushed me forward in my work and did not write me off as an older student. I was thankful for that. Each of them are professional artists (Alexis Serio-Hughes, Merrie Wright and Dewane Hughes). Drs. Kaia Magnusen and Elizabeth LIsot helped open the world of art history to me. I would love to still be in their classes. I came here without a community but found a wonderful art community of which I am grateful. Sharing studios with other artists was great in school. Now I am seeing those same artists doing great things in many different places. It’s such a great family!

Website: tammylawlessart.com

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