The visual world is home to me. I am lured by its silent, spiritual resonance, where the impact of light, color and form is, itself, their explanation. I feel kinship with artists throughout history and the present, as we seek ways to nurture and demonstrate visual truths through organization of form.
I have been active in art all my life, including living and working for many years both in New York City and in Los Angeles, and traveling five times to Europe. I worked for the Getty Art History Information Program, the Getty Museum, the Salt Lake Art Center, and contemporary galleries in New York City and Salt Lake City. For two years I was a textile colorist in New York City, which I am convinced is the most rigorous color training on the planet. I graduated with distinction, summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Barnard College. I was fortunate to earn my M.F.A. from UCLA, one of the most vital art programs in the country.
A lengthy detour then kept me busy owning a business and starting our family. But as the kids reached school age, the doors opened and I began to teach art regularly and participate actively in shows and local art organizations.
Art nourishes our vast, non-verbal intelligence, which provides us with peace of mind, clarity of thought and purpose, organization, and beauty. These self-enhancing, magnifying traits, while they are some of the most practical, powerful and valued skills in the workplace, are not directly addressed and developed in our schools except through art.
It is an honor and privilege to inspire others during the brief time we have on this earth. If my paintings can stir in others the passion and recognition of visual freedom, as my favorite artists have done for me, then I will have achieved great success. Further, if I can convey how to listen to and "converse" in the silent language of light, form and color, as my favorite teacher did for me, then I will have given the best gift I have to offer.
(c) 2004 Julie Engelmann
