Laura Berendsen Hughes is an acrylic painter and graphic designer working in Durham, North Carolina, USA. She received a BFA in Fine Art with a concentration in sculpture from UNC - Chapel Hill and was awarded a Kachergis scholarship. She mainly paints abstract and abstract inspired equine work reflective of her early love for horses.
Artist Statements
When I paint I’m attempting to use my accumulative artistic experience and skill to make something Beautiful. I use a capital “B” for Beauty to imply more than a culturally accepted standard of physical attractiveness. I am not attempting to create something pretty, I’m attempting to transcend the accepted and find the universal and transcendent. Although prettiness does requires skill, for me Beauty is deeper and more all encompassing. Beauty embodies the whole of human
experience and must also contain chaos, decay and imperfection.
My work seeks to capture a complexity that satisfies at a deep level. I want to make something that has history and depth, that is archetypical and opposite from things sterile and minimalistic. I’m looking to capture a collective experience that feels timeless but that still references contemporary culture. I find inspiration in graffiti, street art, tattooing, aboriginal and outsider art as well as modern design. The work is not an attempt to capture emotion but more of a psychological exploration of potency.
What looks intuitive and spontaneous in my work actually starts with a fairly tight plan. I’m an unapologetic copyist and I sample brush stokes, colors, shapes and designs from contemporary working artist and I use these references in a digitally created sketch, but I’m not just executing that guide, at every step of the process I’m open to what the paint wants to do and letting it have a say in what finally shows up. I am trying to find the Beauty in the material of paint and the visual rules or breaking of the rules of good design. I paint multiple layers until there is a sense of final maturity. I refine the seemingly spontaneous and varied initial marks until they become more rich and satisfying. I often take large risks at the end with the introduction of negative spaces that break up the composition and repositions the parts into a new composition. These risks seek to breathe soul into what otherwise might be only skillful. I’m attempting to embody the rich fabric of human experience including stages of innocence, growth, and decay.
I title my works after the ecstatic love poems of the poet and Sufi mystic Rumi who described the spiritual nature of physical reality and the ultimate truth that all things are united and divine.
Gallery Representation
Carlton Gallery, Banner Elk, NC
The Centerpiece Gallery, Raleigh, NC
Current & Upcoming Exhibits
Dec 5, 2022 - Feb 15, 2023 Greenhill Winter Invitational
Jan - Feb, 2023 - Arts of the Albemarle Solo Show
Aug 2023 - Kirby Theater Solo Show
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
March 2020 311 Gallery ABSTRACTS MATTER Juried Show
July - Sept 2020 Re-Awakening - Goldenbelt Durham, NC
Spring - Fall 2020 Solo Shows Saladelia, University Dr. & Hock Plaza, Durham, NC
Spring - Fall 2020 Group Show Carlton Gallery, Boone, NC
January 2021, Spotlight Show, The Centerpiece Gallery, Raleigh, NC
March 2021 - Art’s of the Albermarle Gallery – Solo Exhibit
May 2021 - Hillsborough Arts Council - Dual Exhibit
June-July 2021 - Carlton Gallery Spring Exhibition
Sept-Nov 2021 - Afterglow, Bev's Fine Art - group show
March - May 2022 - Abstracts and Equines, Weslyan College – SOLO SHOW
May-Aug 2022 - Maria V. Howard Arts Center’s 64th National Juried Art Show
April-Sept 2022 - Spring and Summer Show, Carlton Gallery
June 2022 - Macon Arts Alliance Juried Show
July-Aug 2022 - Kirby Theater Solo Show
Oct. 21, 2022 Durham Arts Guild Juried Show
Jan.-Feb 2023 Arts of the Albemarle Solo Show
Artist Statements
When I paint I’m attempting to use my accumulative artistic experience and skill to make something Beautiful. I use a capital “B” for Beauty to imply more than a culturally accepted standard of physical attractiveness. I am not attempting to create something pretty, I’m attempting to transcend the accepted and find the universal and transcendent. Although prettiness does requires skill, for me Beauty is deeper and more all encompassing. Beauty embodies the whole of human
experience and must also contain chaos, decay and imperfection.
My work seeks to capture a complexity that satisfies at a deep level. I want to make something that has history and depth, that is archetypical and opposite from things sterile and minimalistic. I’m looking to capture a collective experience that feels timeless but that still references contemporary culture. I find inspiration in graffiti, street art, tattooing, aboriginal and outsider art as well as modern design. The work is not an attempt to capture emotion but more of a psychological exploration of potency.
What looks intuitive and spontaneous in my work actually starts with a fairly tight plan. I’m an unapologetic copyist and I sample brush stokes, colors, shapes and designs from contemporary working artist and I use these references in a digitally created sketch, but I’m not just executing that guide, at every step of the process I’m open to what the paint wants to do and letting it have a say in what finally shows up. I am trying to find the Beauty in the material of paint and the visual rules or breaking of the rules of good design. I paint multiple layers until there is a sense of final maturity. I refine the seemingly spontaneous and varied initial marks until they become more rich and satisfying. I often take large risks at the end with the introduction of negative spaces that break up the composition and repositions the parts into a new composition. These risks seek to breathe soul into what otherwise might be only skillful. I’m attempting to embody the rich fabric of human experience including stages of innocence, growth, and decay.
I title my works after the ecstatic love poems of the poet and Sufi mystic Rumi who described the spiritual nature of physical reality and the ultimate truth that all things are united and divine.
Gallery Representation
Carlton Gallery, Banner Elk, NC
The Centerpiece Gallery, Raleigh, NC
Current & Upcoming Exhibits
Dec 5, 2022 - Feb 15, 2023 Greenhill Winter Invitational
Jan - Feb, 2023 - Arts of the Albemarle Solo Show
Aug 2023 - Kirby Theater Solo Show
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
March 2020 311 Gallery ABSTRACTS MATTER Juried Show
July - Sept 2020 Re-Awakening - Goldenbelt Durham, NC
Spring - Fall 2020 Solo Shows Saladelia, University Dr. & Hock Plaza, Durham, NC
Spring - Fall 2020 Group Show Carlton Gallery, Boone, NC
January 2021, Spotlight Show, The Centerpiece Gallery, Raleigh, NC
March 2021 - Art’s of the Albermarle Gallery – Solo Exhibit
May 2021 - Hillsborough Arts Council - Dual Exhibit
June-July 2021 - Carlton Gallery Spring Exhibition
Sept-Nov 2021 - Afterglow, Bev's Fine Art - group show
March - May 2022 - Abstracts and Equines, Weslyan College – SOLO SHOW
May-Aug 2022 - Maria V. Howard Arts Center’s 64th National Juried Art Show
April-Sept 2022 - Spring and Summer Show, Carlton Gallery
June 2022 - Macon Arts Alliance Juried Show
July-Aug 2022 - Kirby Theater Solo Show
Oct. 21, 2022 Durham Arts Guild Juried Show
Jan.-Feb 2023 Arts of the Albemarle Solo Show
