Spotlight Artist August 2018: Karen Larrabee

Congratulations to our Spotlight Artist of the Month for July: Karen Larrabee!

"Let Me Think"

About This Piece:

"LET ME THINK" is a graphite portrait of my granddaughter. As stated below, I usually do more colorful, loose, watermedia paintings, but sometimes I just need to remind myself that I can draw. In this case, I loved this typical pose and the mainly black and white composition that showcased her expression. It all compelled me to create the drawing. I did leave out the busier background of the original snapshot in order to focus on her. I just wish I knew WHAT she was thinking....... <3

Artist Bio

A past-president and board member of the Crooked Creek Art League, Karen Larrabee moved to Chapin, SC, 12 years ago and feels blessed by the move.

Karen was born and raised in northern NJ and loved to draw and paint since “forever, it seems”. Her awards began in high school where she had a wonderful and encouraging art program. Marietta College, a small, liberal arts school in Marietta, Ohio, lured her to the Midwest. She received a B.A. in art and education and eventually a Master’s of Liberal learning, (yes, a MA.L.L. degree!) with concentrations in studio art, art history and art education, where her awards continued. While in Ohio, she married, raised a family and taught art for 30 years until her retirement in 2004, continuing to grow her resume. After her daughter transferred to USC, Karen and her husband, David, fell in love with the Midlands. The rest, as they say, “is history”. So far in SC she has been become a Member of Excellence in the South Carolina Watermedia Society, she has been juried into the Greenwood Arts Festival, the Union Exhibit and the State Fair competition every year she has entered, receiving Patron Purchase Awards at the fair in 2009, 2011 and 2014 and a Merit award in 2017. She has also won 10 awards from the Crooked Creek Art League’s Juried Exhibitions including the People's Choice Award in 2014.

Karen says, “I like to define myself as a free-style artist as I love all things creative. I have continuously been exposed to, and engaged in many media and styles and enjoy the freedom to be creative and experiment artistically."

See more of Karen's work in her gallery on this website at crookedcreekart.org/karen-larrabee.

You can reach Karen by clicking HERE.