Theresa Bear is one of those artist you come along that mesmerizes you. Currently residing in Portland, OR where you can find her chasing a dream to find and give voice to unstoppable magic!! …And magic is exactly what she creates!! If you come across one of her pieces, there is going to be no question that it is from her mind and a unique creation. We have three of her pieces adorning our moody green hallway and we think they are absolute show stoppers!!
We VIRTUALLY sat down with Theresa to chat art, music and inspiration! Read on to learn more about this talented Artist!
Tell us a little bit about your background and how you got into art?
I spent a big portion of my childhood in nature. My mother would take me and my brothers up to my grandparents small scale farm in PA on weekends or weeks in the summer. The privilege of feeling the magic, safety, and wonder of nature grew to be the essence and foundation of my life. My art is completely inspired by the magic of nature on Earth. You will always see flowers in my work or pieces of nature. It is a theme that isn’t going away. I found like nature, art quickly became apart of my way to communicate and understand the World. The combination of nature and art is just the most beautiful force.
How do you approach starting a new piece?
I usually start all pieces from a place of wanting to understand, educate, or show a story in a new way. And the best way I start is I look at nature and how it translate a feeling or idea I have. An example would be this idea I had on friendship. I tried to look around me for how nature showed friendship and what metaphors it could translate in a picture. What came to me was two women. One was water the other woman with a watering can and flowers were growing from her and around her.
Where did you draw inspiration for these specific pieces / series?
We were made to flourish and bloom into our truest self. This series is a humorous and creative outlook on the process we go through in life to get to the spot where we are in full bloom. Everyone's bloom looks so different. I wanted to explore what that bloom looked like.
How does where you live, affect the outcome of your work?
I believe nature is medicine. We moved to Portland to have access to the wild medicine Oregon brings. Being able to play on the coast with my two year old, roam old growth forests, and climb mountains is the most beautiful gift I have the privilege of receiving. I find these places or lessons I glean from the Earth energetically and physically make their way into all of my art.
Do you listen to anything specific in when you are working?
I love listening to a good playlist, audio book, or podcast. Nothing gets the creativity boosts going like some good tunes.
What is something about this work that someone might not pick up on immediately?
I feel like a lot of my work has a lot of hidden layers to each of the pieces. I like to think the longer folks look at a piece the more it will tell them.
