Julie Daniels
ARTIST STATEMENT
Westport: Walkways and Waterways
I am fortunate enough to spend time by the ocean each year. I choose the worst weather day in December or January, and browse places to stay as sleet hits my windows. I book it, keep the tap open and just look now and again when I need a boost as the weather worsens.
Last year was Westport, Massachusetts, close to where I spent my childhood summers and host to the famous Horseneck Beach. The cottage was close enough to the beach that we could hear the pounding surf from the screened-in porch. With a boardwalk out the back yard to a beautiful inlet (known as ‘The Let’) and a short bike ride to the beach, it was about as ideal as it could be.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, my husband was unable to join us. Initially, I felt very sad and guilty, but then decided to practice a thing I call intentional joy, where I seek out joyful experiences and beautiful views. These paintings are the result of photographs that I took of those beautiful views that I then used as reference photos. These photos and paintings carry me through the dark and cold months as I reminisce and try to capture the beauty and warmth of our lovely yet short summer months here in the northeast. I hope the viewer feels the tranquility and gratitude that these paintings represent.
Sunset at Horseneck | 16x20 | oil on canvas | 600
Wandering | oil on canvas | 16x20 | 600
Last Light | 16x20 | oil on canvas | 600
Towards Gooseberry Island | 20x16 | oil on canvas | 600
To the Let | 16x20 | oil on canvas | 600
ARTIST STATEMENT
The Broken Family Series
I am the youngest of five children in a middle-class Irish-Catholic family, and relationships were strained to the point of breaking following the death of my father in 2020. Our attorney referred to us as ‘a broken family,’ and that term stuck with me and became the inspiration for this series of five paintings.
The storyline of this series is twofold: the rectangular pieces refer to the loss of my father and mother, respectively, and the square pieces refer to the behavior of my siblings surrounding the health challenges, and finally, the loss of both of my parents. I wanted to honor the memories of my mother and father while acknowledging the pain and trauma caused by my siblings during this difficult time. The overall goal of my art is to bring joy and ease suffering; I didn’t realize it when I started, but it was my own joy and suffering that were eased in the creation of this series.
For some background:
My father and I enjoyed going fishing together when I was younger. We would take our tiny skiff, the Mayflower, out to our aluminum boat with bait, rods, gas, and canned cat food to call in the fish. The Mayflower was so small that my father’s hands had to cross over each other in order to row. I somehow ended up with not only both of the oars from the Mayflower, but one of the oarlocks as well. I decided to incorporate the shape of the boat, the oar, and the oarlock into these pieces. I also used pages of books from our house because this period was a war of words; phrases were twisted or taken out of context to alter their original meaning. Old books are a material I enjoy incorporating into my work because the smell reminds me not only of my parents, but of simpler, happier times..
Bullied | 12x12 | oil and collage on canvas | 250
Directionless | 12x36 | oil and collage on canvas | 650
Belittled | 12x12 | oil and collage on canvas | 250
Untethered | 12x36 | oil and collage on canvas | 650
Betrayed | 12x12 | oil and collage on canvas | 250
ARTIST STATEMENT
The Square Inch Project
This series of collages is the result of working with a local jeweler who created a line of pendants and rings using tiny circles of cast-off watercolor paintings from various artists and then pouring resin over them. After giving her some of my paintings from what I call my ‘turd’ pile, I got to thinking about what potential value these paintings might have. Though they were clearly worthless to me, she was willing to pay me for my work. We settled on charging by the square inch. Then I realized that there was value in these paintings, even though I thought of them as failures. So I started mining my own work for sections of color or texture that spoke to me. I simply play with placement until it feels cohesive. I am surprised and delighted every single time.
What I have learned from this is that all of it matters in life; the good, the bad, the successes and the failures. You can take a tiny piece of something you think of as no good and transform it by giving it value and reframing it. All our experiences weave together to make this “one wild and precious life” (Mary Oliver).
“Square Inch Project #1” — 7” x 5” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $60
“Square Inch Project #2” — 7” x 6” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $60
“Square Inch Project #3” — 9” x 4” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $45
“Square Inch Project #4” — 9” x 4” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $45
“Square Inch Project #5” — 9” x 5” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $60
“Square Inch Project #6” — 5” x 5” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $50
“Square Inch Project #7” — 5” x 5” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $50
“Square Inch Project #8” — 5” x 5” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $50
“Square Inch Project #9” — 5” x 5” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $50
“Square Inch Project #20” — 3” x 3” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $30
“Square Inch Project #10” — 5” x 5” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $50
“Square Inch Project #21” — 3” x 3” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $30
Square Inch #11 3x3 Collage $30
Square Inch #12 3x3 Collage $30
“Square Inch Project #13” — 3” x 3” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $30
“Square Inch Project #14” — 3” x 3” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $30
“Square Inch Project #15” — 3” x 3” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $30
“Square Inch Project #16” — 3” x 3” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $30
“Square Inch Project #17” — 3” x 3” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $30
“Square Inch Project #18” — 3” x 3” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $30
“Square Inch Project #19” — 3” x 3” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $30
“Square Inch Project #22” — 3” x 3” — Watercolor Collage, Mounted on Board, Sealed with Wax — $30
ARTIST STATEMENT
The Lost Summer Series
This series of oil paintings is a love letter to a place that has, and always will, have my heart: a small beach overlooking Buzzards Bay towards Cape Cod. The small cottage just up the road was what I always thought of as home, even though we were only there for the summers. It was all I ever looked forward to. A bit of family lore has it that when I was about four after coming home from church, I was nowhere to be found. My garments, however, left a trail down the dirt road to the beach, where they saw me and my bare bottom, just sitting and playing in the waves.
I have always loved sunset, a time of day when it is neither light nor dark; neither day nor night. Sunsets on the beach were especially beautiful and this series is an attempt to freeze time while capturing the serenity of the moment. Since the house is gone and the sunsets are now a memory, these paintings provide me a bit of solace for all the summers lost: past, present and future.
Angelica at Low Tide (diptych) | 11 x 14 | oil on canvas | 400
Angelica at Low Tide (diptych) | 11 x 14 | oil on canvas | 400
The Golden Hour | 16 x 8 | oil on canvas | 175
Breaking Wave | 14 x 5 | oil and cold wax on board | 100
Color Study in Blue | 7 x 5 | oil on panel | 75
Color Study in Pink | 5 x 7 | oil on panel | 75
Color Study in Purple | 7 x 5 | oil on panel | 75
The Golden Hour | 10 x 7 | cold wax and oil on paper | 100
Sailor’s Delight | 7 x 5 | oil on panel | 75
All To Myself (series of four panels) | 7 x 9 | oil, cold wax and sand on board | 500
All To Myself (series of four panels) | 7 x 9 | oil, cold wax and sand on board | 500
All To Myself (series of four panels) | 7 x 9 | oil, cold wax and sand on board | 500
All To Myself (series of four panels) | 7 x 9 | oil, cold wax and sand on board | 500
July Sunset | 14 x 10 | oil and cold wax on paper | 175
Over the Wall | 9 x 12 | oil on board | 175
Sunrise at Hollywoods | 7 x 5 | oil and cold wax on panel | 75
Point Connett Sunset | 14 x 10 | oil cold and wax on panel | 200
Tide Coming In | 7 x 9 | oil, cold wax and sand on board | 100
The Water is Fine | 12 x 12 | oil on canvas | 200
Cloudbank at Sunset | 11 x 11 | oil and cold wax on board | 175