Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Lorraine Bubar. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Lorraine, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s jump right into how you came up with the idea?
I have worked in a lot of different artistic fields, including animation and illustration, but it was not until I started to pursue being an independent fine artist and finding my own signature way of working did my work truly become my own, blended many of my interests, and became more recognizable. I love to travel and I realized that so many cultures around the world, from Europe to Asia to Mexico, has some form of papercutting, including in my own cultural background. So I decided to change my painting style into papercuts, doing them in a more painterly, colorful way than any papercuts I had seen. I use handmade colored papers that are created in countries where I have traveled, including Japan, Nepal, and Thailand. As I pursued this style of working, more and more people remembered who I am: “Oh, you are the one who cuts their work out of paper.” Finding my own voice made my work stand out, which opened many more avenues to exhibit and sell my work. It brought together my interest in traveling and crafts created in those countries, and I enjoy honoring the cultural heritage of papercutting, but doing it my way.
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?
My artwork is created by hand cutting with an xacto knife and layering colored papers to create intricate, colorful, one of a kind compositions. I worked in the animation industry for many years, prior to computer generated animation, so I have the patience and discipline to create very detailed work. For many years, I also taught drawing, painting, and printmaking to a variety of ages. That gave me an appreciation of color and composition. My traveling did that as well, and I am very influenced by Japanese printmaking. Working the way I currently do has set me apart from other artists. Cutting my work out of paper, in this unique way, has also led me to many opportunities, including being invited to be an Artist in Residence in many National Parks. Those residencies have inspired many of my compositions that capture the plants, animals, and colors in those fragile environments.
Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?
I look for opportunities to get as many eyes on my work as possible. This has motivated me to participate in art fairs where thousands of people walk by and look. I look for opportunities to talk about my work, including at the National Parks where I have been an Artist in Residence. I have always offered a public talk or workshop demonstrating how I work and many people attend. I also feel proud of having donated work to charity auctions so that my art has raised money for many excellent causes. These things have benefitted the people participating but have also increased the visibility of my work.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
My daily goal is to stay true to my vision. I am now creating artwork that comes out of the fusion of my travel and hiking experiences, work experiences, and museum and gallery viewing. All of these life experiences have informed my sensibilities and skills, but did not necessarily lead to the way I work. I had to allow myself to pursue this passion, which blurs the distinction between fine arts and crafts. I have to remind myself not to get distracted by what other artists are currently exhibiting or doing. I have found my place by working in a style that is particular to me and people respond to it.
The more authentic my work is, the more heart I have in it, the more people are interested in it, which means purchasing it or exhibiting it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.lorrainebubar.com
- Instagram: lorrainebubarartist
- Facebook: lorrainebubarartist
