We were lucky to catch up with Larry Spear recently and have shared our conversation below.

Larry, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Has your work ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized?

As a non-objective painter, I think the public in general has a misconception about the visual arts and what constitutes quality work in the discipline. Great art, of any kind, requires a masterful use of the elements of that particular medium. In the visual arts the quality of the work has no relationship to if it is a picture of some object and how “realistically” the artist has depicted the object. This seems to primarily be an issue in the visual arts.

For example, in music, people enjoy and praise many creations that rely entirely upon an appreciation of how the composer utilizes the audio elements.. All music uses the elements of harmony, timbre, melody, rhythm, etc., to create meaningful compositions. Visual art, be it Realism, Abstract, or Non-objective, all need to be viewed, and evaluated through the same lens and ultimately be judged by the artist’s use of the visual elements, such as color, value, line, shape, etc. Perhaps this issue goes back to humans using our eyes to identify things in the world that will affect us, like a tiger lurking in the bushes.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I started college as a music major, but soon realized that my talents were in the visual arts. Following my college years, I taught art at both Florida Atlantic University and Broward Community College in Florida.

I create large scale, non-objective paintings, usually in oil paints. I paint in an improvisational manner, similar to a jazz musician, developing my paintings, with artistic decisions based on what I have already put on the canvas. My style emphasizes strong color relationship and bravado brushwork.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

At this point in my career, I strive to be a mature artist. To me this means to be consistent in style and execution. I know what I want to paint and try to create a uniform body of quality work. I have learned and developed the necessary technical skills to create those works of art.

I also believe it is important to work on your art everyday. By doing that, an artist starts to make quality artistic decisions, which in the end determine the success of a painting.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

Social institutions, such as government, need to provide venues and creative opportunities to visual artists and appreciate how much the arts add to a civilized society.

Individuals can support the visual arts through attending and supporting art events and by patronizing artists, purchasing their work. Not everyone can spend millions to buy a Van Gogh, but many people can afford to buy local art. Who knows, that piece you spent hundreds on could be worth millions someday!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://larrywspear.com
• Instagram: Larry Spear
• Facebook: Larry Spear