"Self-Reliance" by Kristin Jurist Haakenson





Left side



Right side





(click images to enlarge)

"Self-Reliance" by Kristin Jurist Haakenson

12" x 24" x 1.5"

acrylic on canvas

$500 + $30 shipping (contact)

I was inspired by Colorado artist Kate Dardine's recent quest to revive half-finished, forgotten paintings that have been sitting around the studio. This buffalo painting was, for the most part, finished - but I wasn't happy with the final result, and it has since been collecting dust. I decided to use some leftover paint from recent pieces and try to work as loosely as possible (I save all of my extra mixed paint in tupperware containers...once I spray them with some water and close the lid, they can last for weeks).

I've also been reading an anthology of literature by the American Transcendentalists. It has a lot of classic pieces that I could re-read time and time again, as well as some really fascinating journal entries, etc. that I've never read before. The Transcendentalists' writings have been a foundation in my life since I first delved into them...Ralph Waldo Emerson, in particular, really speaks to my soul.

I decided to choose a quote by Emerson (his work is in the public domain) to write on the sides of the canvas...the image of the lone bison really seemed to call out for something from "Self-Reliance".

The left side of the canvas features the following text, handwritten in a Sharpie pen (which was surprisingly difficult):
"Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist. He who would gather immortal palms must not be hindered by the name of goodness, but must explore if it be goodness. Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind. Absolve you to yourself, and you shall have the suffrage of the world."

RALPH WALDO EMERSON: Self-Reliance

...and the right side features this text:

"Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind." - Self-Reliance

RALPH WALDO EMERSON



 When I feel like I need to loosen up between other paintings, I might continue this trend and try my hand at creating some similar Transcendentalist-themed paintings.

Kristin Jurist Haakenson

http://kristinjurist-art.com/

http://kristinjuristart.blogspot.com/

kristinjurist@gmail.com

"Crossing the Yellowstone" by Kristin Jurist Haakenson

"Crossing the Yellowstone" by Kristin Jurist Haakenson

acrylic on canvas

24" x 36" x 1.5"

$1100 + $45 shipping (contact)

I tried loosening up a bit more for this painting...I wanted to focus on the colors and give a more surreal impression to the landscape.

FYI, Proctor Art Gallery (Tacoma, WA) will be having a lot of events throughout the month of October...it's "Arts Crush" month in Tacoma.

Kristin Jurist Haakenson
http://kristinjurist-art.com/

http://kristinjuristart.blogspot.com/

kristinjurist@gmail.com

"Where the Tall Grass Bends" by Kristin Jurist Haakenson

Detail of buffalo

"Where the Tall Grass Bends" by Kristin Jurist Haakenson

acrylic on gallery wrapped canvas

16" x 40" x 1.5"

$1000 + $45 shipping (contact)


I decided to try my hand at a small herd of bison - you can click the thumbnails to see the detail better.  Iridescent gold paint is mixed in with the pigments.

Kristin Jurist Haakenson
http://kristinjurist-art.com/

http://kristinjuristart.blogspot.com/

kristinjurist@gmail.com

"Running Before Time Took Our Dreams Away" by Kristin Jurist Haakenson

"Running Before Time Took Our Dreams Away" by Kristin Jurist Haakenson

acrylic on canvas / 24" x 36"
$650 unframed or $875 framed
Available for purchase through Freshwater Studio & Gallery, Dillon, MT (contact)

I was listening to Pink Floyd's album "The Division Bell" while painting this one. The painting's title comes from a line in that album's last track, "High Hopes" - it really stuck out to me as I was working on the buffalo.

The photo has some light reflection on the left side, which helps to reveal the texture a bit in the photo. I've been working on practicing patience lately with my art, and I feel like that's permitting me to produce richer colors on the canvas (that effect isn't translated as well when photographed). The immediate gratification of using palette knives to mix colors on the canvas is wonderful, but I wanted to achieve more depth without using more texture. Texture is still an integral part of a painting like this, but I've been layering textured paint with light color washes to make the effect more subtle. I've also been scraping with the knives more; once several layers of texture and color have dried, I literally scrape more color onto the canvas to achieve softer highlights and to make the paint break in a natural-looking way. The layers of colors interact with each other to produce a bit of a glow.

Kristin Jurist Haakenson
http://kristinjurist-art.com
http://kristinjuristart.blogspot.com
kristinjurist@gmail.com

"Uphill" by Kristin Jurist Haakenson

"Uphill" by Kristin Jurist Haakenson

acrylic on canvas / 24" x 12"
$525 unframed or $650 framed
Available for purchase through Freshwater Studio & Gallery, Dillon, MT (contact)

The mighty American bison is truly a remarkable creature - it's so solid and powerful. What I love in particular about them, though, is how they're both majestic and goofy - they always have that ridiculous patchy fur in warm weather and they like to roll around in the mud as much as a dog does.

The background for this painting consists of several layers with both palette knife and brush work. I wanted it to have a sort of cave-ish appearance, and the acrylic gels work really well when trying to achieve a rocky, organic look. The buffalo himself is painted in shades of red and yellow, and his horns & hooves have a blue-ish tint to them.

Kristin Jurist Haakenson
http://kristinjurist-art.com
http://kristinjuristart.blogspot.com
kristinjurist@gmail.com