We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Laura Till Barton a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Laura thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I attended the Savannah College of Art and Design and graduated with a B.F.A. in interior design in 2011. I am currently a professional fine artist with gallery representation and a working studio/gallery in Savannah’s historic City Market Art Center. It was a long journey to transition from interior design to a full-time fine artist, and I am so glad that I took the plunge! In college, I was surrounded by creatives of all disciplines. We were constantly visiting each other’s studios and helping each other with various projects. One couldn’t help but be influenced by the other disciplines. In addition to my interior design courses, I was required to take a variety of fine art foundation classes such as color theory, 2-D and 3-D design, drawing, and so on. It gave me an incredible base of knowledge and led to the exploration of various mediums and bringing them together in a structured way. My innate understanding of the interior environment, space, and order influence the structure of my artwork and the choices I make in my color pallets. I paint with oils and gold leaf and have read countless books on technique. The most essential key in my development over all of these years has been continually surrounding myself with other artists that I admire, asking questions and learning from them.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

As a child, my grandmother would take me to the fine arts museum that she was a patron of every weekend. Before I was allowed to go play in the kid’s section, I had to walk through the whole museum, looking at current exhibitions as well as the permanent collection. This instilled a deep appreciation of the arts at a very young age, for which I am forever indebted to her. My work is certainly influenced by those countless museum trips. My primary subjects are micro views of botanicals, night life, and tropical coastal themes.

The first thing that the viewer will notice is the vibrant colors used in my paintings. Color is as much of a medium to me as oil paints. I use it to express what I see and feel when inspiration strikes. I use elegant, flowing forms to depict my subjects and add complementary colors as highlights to make certain areas pop. Most viewers don’t notice this until they take a closer look, or until it is pointed out to them. You could call it my secret ingredient that brings everything together. This also adds to the colorful impression left on the viewer, who will leave feeling uplifted and inspired.

I established my first professional studio in 2014, in the grungy working artist area of Savannah, Ga. I was there for several years, creating and selling out of this tiny 8’x8′ studio that was part of a gallery. Each month, the gallery would have a big show that would draw in the locals. They had an exhibit in the main gallery and then all of the working studios that bordered the gallery would be open and display what they had created the previous month. I was surrounded by a very diverse group of creatives and we would bounce ideas off each other. This led to me joining a co-op gallery in Savannah’s main tourist area downtown.

In 2019, I let both of those spaces go to join as a founding member to a new boutique gallery that also had artist studios. The caliber of the artists there was incredible. I was inspired and pushed to new heights and had my first taste of gallery representation. I also signed with a prominent gallery in Savannah’s new luxury development, Plant Riverside. Later that year, I had the opportunity to go out on my own and establish my solo working studio and gallery in downtown Savannah’s Historic City Market Art Center. I have been there ever since.

The biggest benefit to having a working studio and gallery space in a thriving tourist area is that no one can sell your work like you can! People come from all over the country and the world and just walk into my space and see me right there at the easel, working. They can see my process as well as the variety of finished works which hang of the walls of my gallery. People crave a connection to the artist and a story behind each work, and I am more than happy to give that to them! I am also surrounded by amazing artists who also have galleries in the Art Center, a central theme to my journey as an artist. This continuous enrichment by the community of artists that I have found myself in has been absolutely incredible and invaluable at each stage of my career. It keeps me from growing stagnant, a death sentence as an artist!

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

The arts are essential to the human experience. They are a time stamp on the current culture of a society. The best way to support artists is to invest in art that speaks to you. Attend art shows in your local community, share and follow work that you enjoy. It may seem small, but each interaction with the community that artists have makes a difference in their careers.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

Having been in this career for 9 years now, I have put in the hard work as far as technique goes. I am at the rewarding stage now that I know exactly what I am doing so when I start a piece, I avoid mistakes that waste time and I can create beautiful works relatively quickly. There is that magic when you have an idea and then the creative stars align and you are able to execute it immediately without overthinking it. You trust your gut and your skillset, and it just flows out of you. Also, being able to see people’s reactions when they see my work and have conversations with them about it. It is so rewarding!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.LauraTillBarton.com
• Instagram: @Laura_Barton_Fine_Art
• Facebook: Laura Till Barton Fine Art

Image Credits
Laura Till Barton Erica Beeler Sam Cole