Artist 4 years old, Baton Rouge.
Laura Berendsen Hughes is a graphic designer and fine artist. She has a BFA in sculpture from UNC - Chapel Hill and has lived in Durham for over 40 years. While her work as a designer and illustrator has specific messaging goals, she has recently returned to working in fine art where the aim is intrinsic value.
Artist Statements
Horse Work
I remember obsessively drawing horses as a child. When I began to paint again quickly reclaimed them as a subject. I enjoy their dramatic, monumental silhouettes but I attempt to portray them without sentimentality or over romanticism, no flowing manes and tails for instance. I begin with abstract under paintings and use these to provide the information that I keep or remove, developing the figure with spontaneity. The final product captures an unpredictable combination of those first intuitive and unpredictable abstracts. This process mirrors the transcendence I love in the poetry of Rumi, who's poetry I use as inspiration for the final titles.
Abstracts
Similar to Frank Zappa's album "Shut up and Play Yer Guitar," I've liberated the abstracts that make up the underpainting of my equine work. The abstract work is colorful and often uses powdered charcoal and graphite which adds subtle textural and reflective richness. It is meant to be bravely personal, taking risks with bold passages juxtaposed with more vulnerable frailty. The works are created with many techniques and are built with multiple layers until there is a sense of final maturity. The spontaneous becomes rich and satisfying.
Gallery Representation
Carlton Gallery, Banner Elk, NC
The Centerpiece Gallery, Raleigh, NC
Current & Upcoming Exhibits
Jan-Apr 2020 - Solo Show, Saladelia University Dr., Durham, NC
May 2020 - Solo Show, Hillsborough Arts Council, Hillsborough, NC
Past Exhibits
June - August 2012, Saladelia, Hock Plaza Durham, NC – Solo Exhibit
October 2012 - January 2013, Broad St., Durham, NC – Solo Exhibit
November 2012 - February, 2013 Mad Hatter, Durham NC – Solo Exhibit
February 2013 - Durham Arts Guild Sweet Art Festival – Participating Artist
February - Ongoing - Bull Street Gourmet & Market, Durham NC
April 2013, Urban Durham Realty, Durham NC – Solo Exhibit
April 2013 - Durham Art Walk – Participating Artist
May 2013 - The Carrack Modern Art – Painting Gone Wild Group Show
May 2013 - Durham Arts Council – Faculty and Student Show
June 2013 - Carrack Modern – Community Show
June 2013 - Broad Street Cafe – Co-show
June 2013 - Joe Van Gogh – Solo Exhibit
July 2013 - Saladelia, University Drive – Solo Exhibit
November 2013 - Mad Hatter’s Cafe – Solo Exhibit
December 2013 - Busy Bee – Solo Exhibit
February 2014 Joe Van Gogh – Solo Exhibit
February 2014 – Alizarin Gallery
July 2014 - Lillly’s Pizza – Solo Exhibit
Oct 2014 – Bank of the Arts Juried Show (Honorable Mention)
December 2014 - Busy Bee – Solo Exhibit
Jan 2015 – Hillsborough Gallery juried show RESOLUTIONS (Peoples Choice award)
March 2015 - Reflection Gallery at Church of the Good Shepherd – Group Exhibit
June 2015 - Carrboro Arts Center – Solo Exhibit
Oct 2015 - Art’s of the Albermarle Gallery – Solo Exhibit
Nov-Jan 2016 - Saladelia, Hock – Solo Exhibit
Jan 2016 – Hillsborough Gallery juried show RESOLUTIONS
March 2016 - The Kirby Gallery – Solo Exhibit
June 2016 - Busy Bee – Solo Exhibit
July 2016 - The FRANK Gallery – Group Invitational
Aug 24 – Sept 24, 2016 - Hillsborough Arts Council – Solo Exhibit
Sept. 16 – 2016 Pop-Up Gallery, Golden Belt Artist Studios, Durham
Sept 17 - Nov 11 – 2016 Wild Horses of the Outer Banks, Carolina Artist Gallery, Morehead City NC (honorable mention)
Nov-Jan 2017 - Saladelia, University Drive – Solo Exhibit
Jan 2017 - Hillsborough Gallery "Resolutions" Juried Show
March 2017 - The Kirby Gallery – Solo Exhibit
June 2017 - Art’s of the Albermarle Gallery – Solo Exhibit
Sept-Oct - Group Show Carlton Gallery, Boone
April 2018 - Carrboro Arts Center – Duo Exhibit
July-Sept 2018 - Captain White House, Graham, NC – Solo Exhibit
October 2018 - Kirby Theater Opening Reception, Roxboro, NC – Solo Exhibit
Sept-Nov 2018 - Saladelia, University Drive – Solo Exhibit
Nov-Jan 2019 - Saladelia, Hock Plaza – Solo Exhibit
Jan-April 2019 - Yoga for Life – Charlotte, NC – Solo Exhibit
July 2019 - Art’s of the Albermarle Gallery – Solo Exhibit
Aug-Sept 2019 - Caldwell Arts Council – Lenoir, NC – 3 Artist Exhibit
Sept 2019 - Artist Spotlight Show, The Centerpiece Gallery, Raleigh, NC
Oct 2019 - Group Show, Arts of the Albemarle, Elizabeth City, NC (Best of Show)
March 2020 - Group Juried Show, "Abstracts Matter" 311 Gallery, Raleigh, NC
March 2020 - Art Room Abstract Show, (Merit Awards), online gallery Juried Show
