Sandy Ackerman

Artist Statement

Painting has been my method of connecting with the world around me for my entire life. It is the medium I use to attempt to communicate the awe I feel when I see sunlight filtering through leaves, or reflecting on a cloud, or that spark in the moment when you make eye contact with someone. My challenge is to capture those transient images in a way that communicates to others what I saw in that fleeting moment.  Nature, in its perfection, creates endless opportunities for study.

My usual area of concentration has been the landscape.  I recently have been interested in the figure interacting within the landscape. As I gain the perspective of age, watch my children grow, and my parents grow old, I see the stages of our lives as fleeting moments. Something to capture, preserve and communicate through my paintings.

I paint from life, plein air, in oil, trying to capture the heat of the sun or the movement of the wind. My figures are also painted from life. Those subjects caught in a moment, interacting with their surroundings. My paintings are a realistic portrayal of my interpretation of the moment, not a photographically realistic portrayal of the scene

 Background information

I studied painting at The University of Minnesota, The Chicago Institute of Art, and EasternMichiganUniversity. I earned my teaching certification at EasternMichiganUniversity. After traveling the world as a flight attendant, I devoted my time to raising my children and painting murals in private homes and public spaces. I am currently teaching high school for PlymouthCantonCommunitySchool District.

Recently, I returned to painting canvases. I am anxious to share my works of art. This has been a long journey. I feel I have come full circle and arrived back at my original calling, to paint.

Exhibitions                                Eastern Michigan Graduate Show   2013

Juried shows

 

Views and Visions                                                 2010

Canton Fine Arts 19^th annual exhibition     2011

Views and Visions  (award winner)                2011

BBAC  MFAC                                                          2012

Views and Visions                                                2012

Canton Fine Arts                                                  2012

Views and Visions                                                2013

Canton Fine Arts   (Merit Award Winner)  2013

Sincerely,

Sandra Ackerman