Lorraine Lee
City / Town: Lethbridge
Location: Alberta: Calgary & Southern
Phone: ------
Email: sister@animail.net
View Artwork
Biography
About The Artist:
Lorraine Lee is a mostly self taught artist with classes and courses thrown in here and there for good measure. She is fond of bright, rich colours, which can likely be at least partially attributed to 21 years working with children!
However, she has occasionally been known to use darker more 'serious' tones.
About Lorraine's Papier Mache Art:
"I like papier mache for many reasons - supplies are readily available.. it is a recycler's dream.. and I get to be messy and be a kid again!!
I have often referred to papier mache as Tai Chi with paper ----- because there are many many layers and it is almost meditative to continuously smooth those layers .. and patience is a requirement!!!
One of the qualities of papier mache is that it often takes YOU in a direction, and not the other way around.... what you think you have started with, may not be the final result.... It often has a mind of it's own as to how it dries and forms. THAT can begin to dictate what direction you go in. It can be interesting to watch how those layers develop, change and evolve into something you never expected.
I also like how deceptive it can be.. Papier mache can be very very light, and yet have many layers and hours of work put into just the basic building of the piece before you ever put a spot of paint on... and depending what look I am after it can be made to look like metal, wood or stone or pottery ( but if I drop an item it will not break which is always a relief!)
It can be functional or purely decorative.
I have always been drawn to masks... they can represent a multitude of emotions, styles, cultures, characters, spirits...
There are so many roads you can travel with masks, and so many stories you can find.
I love doing this because it is just plain fun.
I like colour and humour and a sense of joy and if I can express that and draw out a grin from someone, or if someone likes the texture, the feel of a piece and it evokes some thought, some emotion that pleases them, then I must be doing something right..."