Laraine Armenti

visual artist

Vermont Gouache

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In July I took a road trip to paint outside in southern Vermont. Choosing to use watercolor and gouache on paper solved numerous itinerant-painting related issues. Watercolor and gouache dry fast, have quick set-up and clean-up, and need very little storage space. The paint doesn't melt in the heat or threaten to ignite within a baking car. There are no combustible rags to dispose. These … [Read more...]

VSC Walkabout

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VSC Walkabout was made while in residence last month at Vermont Studio Center in Johnson, Vermont. As daily drawings accumulated, a narrative emerged from the sequence of places seen: the studio, dining hall, bedroom, campus, and town. VSC Walkabout presents the architectural and emotional places that form the backdrop of still-life work done in the studio. This project was made without … [Read more...]

ANE / Bennington — Week 2

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My time on the road included a side trip to visit Tad Spurgeon. After years of appreciating his work online, Tad generously let me interrupt his painting time to meet him and see his work in person. His studio is a wondrous cavern filled to the brim with paintings stacked and hung on every surface; it is a marvelous workshop of intense explorations. His extensive experiments with materials are a … [Read more...]

ANE / Benn Workshops

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In July I completed two weeks of workshops at Art New England in Bennington, Vermont, offered by Mass College of Art: "Book Arts" taught by Valerie Carrigan and "Rethinking Landscape" taught by Emily Eveleth. I strongly recommend the ANE program to anyone interested in packing a semester's worth of study into one week, instructed by world-class artists. Here is the Facebook ANE link. ABOVE:  … [Read more...]

Retreat

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In September I went off grid for a four day meditation and retreat. Five hundred of us ate breakfast in near silence. Some people couldn't stop the urge to talk. Others used cell phones where they were prohibited. But the majority of participants reveled in the opportunity to unplug for a few days and experience quiet. It was deeply calming. The program combines nutrition, movement, and … [Read more...]

Vermont Ridge

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I am relatively new to landscape painting so the results from one canvas to the next can seem radically different even within one day. On one hand it's exciting to make new discoveries with paint. On the other it's disconcerting to see disparate eras of art history flow through the end of a brush in rapid succession. I hope my vision will settle down with more time spent in the field. ABOVE: … [Read more...]

Vermont Garden

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I am in the process of updating my website, which happens each year in the fall. It usually takes longer working on the computer than I want or expect, only to end up with reproductions that are thin gruel compared to the real paintings. However, there is a pleasure in sifting through the images; the process yields new feelings about what I've seen and been working on. Another benefit is being … [Read more...]