(Photo above: Barbara Slater with her painting “Range Manager”)

My Grandfather had a farm outside of Ogden, Utah and I spent a lot of time with him there and got to know a lot about animals. I felt as a child that I could really communicate with animals. I started drawing when I was three or four years old, using crayons and colored pencils. Later when I was ten years old my parents enrolled me in a correspondence-by-mail course.

When I paint I want to love what I’m doing. So now, when I paint animals I concentrate on the lights in their eyes to express their personality. The eyes are the mirror of the soul and can be painted to show gentleness and the look of being approachable – two things that appeal to people. Observers’ eyes go to light and soft areas that invite them in, whereas dark areas stop the eye. Whatever the subject might be, the viewer is drawn into the painting by the light source. Every good painting has a sweet spot where the light plays a part in making the focal point.

Find someone whose work you like and learn from them – ask questions, get them to critique your work, take art courses from artists you admire. You have to learn the fundamentals of painting to become good at it, then you follow your bliss and try not to be too hard on yourself. When I do a painting I like to do portraits of whatever the subject matter is – I like the closeup. It seems intimate and personal to me. It is my bliss.

When looking to buy a piece of art, make sure that you love it and that it strikes a chord within you – either of a memory of feelings or of an experience. It should feel like you belong to each other. Then you will never tire of it and will enjoy it for years to come. Select the painting that most resonates with your being. When you do so that art will transform the space where you hang it, uplifting your spirit on a daily basis, often in surprising ways.

Barbara Slater is the featured artist with an exhibit of her paintings at Black Butte Resort during October and November 2018.