Today we’d like to introduce you to Andrée. B. Carter.
Hi Andrée. B., please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
As a woman of the baby boom generation, I was searching for an identity beyond my accomplishments as a wife and mother. I was looking for a way to express myself that had nothing to do with others. I started painting on a whim but realized I wanted to know more about Art History. In 1985 I traveled to Florence, Italy to study Italian Renaissance Art. When I returned from this trip I decided to pursue a degree in fine art so I enrolled into Loyola University in New Orleans (where I am from). After completing my undergraduate studies, I was accepted into the MFA program at the University of New Orleans. I received a lot of recognition for my paintings soon after receiving my MFA. I was awarded a solo exhibition at a local gallery and my first artist-in-residency at Virginia Center for Creative Arts.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The biggest obstacle I experienced was when my husband died in 1987 while I was still in undergraduate school. My challenge was how to continue my education and raise my two sons without their father. In spite of this tremendous loss, I knew I had to continue with my studies and I graduated cum laude and went on to get my master’s degree in fine art.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My work has been influenced by the places I have lived, my interest in art history, and my travels. I moved from New Orleans after 51 years and ended up in Seattle where the verdant landscapes and the gray skies were such a contrast from the tropical landscapes and humidity of New Orleans.
Since color is a driving force in my work, I knew my color palette would expand. After spending 16 years in Seattle I moved to Los Angeles where my color sensibility expanded again. Now I am living in Palm Desert where its earthy colors are seeping into my work.
Besides color, I am a very tactile painter. I use powdered pigment mixed with Gesso to create my own colors. I also use desert sand, marble dust, paper, and various other elements to build up my surfaces. All of these additions give a physicality to my process.
The most important thing I have added to my work is my use of my own needlepoint designs integrated into the paintings. By combining my personal colors with my own needlepoint designs, I have created a signature style. Two historically traditional techniques, mixing paint by hand and using hand-crafted needlepoint, allow me to refer to the past yet speak to a contemporary approach relevant for our times.
How do you define success?
As an artist, I cannot define success by how much money I make. Of course, I love when someone buys my work because it validates my voice.
I would say my success comes from the many artist-in-residencies that I have been awarded, my international exhibitions, and the constant dialogue I have with like-minded artists, critics, and art historians.
Many times people come into the studio and ask me fascinating questions about my process and my meaning. I explain it this way, “I am asking questions, not giving answers, I want the viewer to bring their own life experience and interpretation into my work.”
That is my definition of success.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.andreecarter.com
- Instagram: @abstractabc
Image Credits
Hogan B. Carter
