Dena Lyons
My work revolves around la joie de vivre . I find this joy of life expressed in the panoply of colors that we experience everyday; the sun beaming down on one’s face and the intricate subtleties of people. My paintings remind viewers to recognize these colors as wondrous, rather than mundane. Realizing as well that there are many complex truths behind the facades, I find joy in other aspects of the world around me as well. My portraits reveal that, despite the mere one percent of genetic coding that differentiates us, individuals display diverse psyches and distinct souls. These human wonders become animated in their possessions; boats illustrate so much about their owners, and houses reveal the lives and deaths of their inhabitants, exposing eras of war and peace, prosperity and decay. My paintings can be read as narratives as well as placed in a space and time. Informed by the everyday-ness and individuality of my subjec...