American Art

Linda Besse

American, Active

Biography

Like most wildlife artists, Linda was enchanted with animals at an early age. However, it was the vivid childhood memories of her great uncle and his African hunting stories which gave her an immediate sense of the adventure one experiences when exploring wild animals and places. Linda was drawn to the outdoors through her geology bachelor’s degree from Colgate University, followed with a Master of Science degree which enabled her to get into the back country of Alaska, Nevada, Wyoming, Utah, and Montana.

Painting exclusively in oil because she likes its luminosity, depth, and intensity of color, Linda uses a mostly wet-on-wet technique to capture the immediacy of the image. Linda developed this technique after her 1997 trip to Africa. Once she saw the deep oranges and cobalt blues so central to the colors of this continent, she knew that in order to capture the essence of these animals, her technique had to match the spirit of her subject. Linda was then able to adapt this approach to her paintings of animals and nature from around the world.

Linda’s oil paintings were garnering attention and in the fall of 1998 had her first show when she was juried into the nationally recognized Pacific Rim Wildlife Art Expo in Seattle. With the high praise she continued to receive for her work, Linda decided in the spring of 1999 to become a full time wildlife artist.
Linda knows it is essential to see the animals in their natural habitat and uses only her own photos, field sketches, and field paintings as the basis for her paintings. She creates a composition designed to reflect the inherent artistry of nature. The words of John Ruskin illustrate how Linda feels when she begins a painting, ” Nature is painting for us, day after day, pictures of infinite beauty if only we have eyes to see them.” Using nature’s own artistry, Linda works to capture that intricate beauty in her work.
Living in the country surrounded by deer, wild turkey, grouse, quail, coyote, the occasional moose and cougar, and with a studio overlooking a ravine filled with deer trails, Linda doesn’t have to step far to see Nature’s artistry all around her. And, maybe it is that closeness with nature, infused in each brush stroke, that keeps her collectors coming back.

 

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