Dianna Shomaker
Placitas, NM
Creating Intuitive Abstract Paintings in Oil, Acrylic, and Encaustic
MessageDianna grew up on a small farm in western Washington. A child of the depression, she created enjoyment from the ordinary things of nature and cast-off objects at hand. The instinctive inclinations of those days sparked a process that has continued to grow throughout a life of wonder, expression, and education. She searched for answers to many questions and found some in art, nursing, and anthropology, with art being the primary thread connecting such disparate sources of knowledge. Her current professional life is now entirely devoted to art.
Guided primarily by intuition, she creates abstractions through a selection of media: oil, acrylic, or encaustic. The results have been rewarded with accolades and prizes regionally, nationally and internationally and have been described as lyrical, organic, and fluid. Her philosophy is that art is magical for the viewer and for artist. It should speak to our capacity to wonder, to dream, and to delight in the mystery of its personal message
It all began in a high school art class with a linoleum print from her abstract design. It captured the attention of the teacher and she was encouraged to enter it in shows. That was the beginning of a long and diverse career. This was the peak of the Abstract Expressionist Movement, and her abstract art was there but unknown to her at the time. However, it earned her art scholarships to college, later supplemented by art courses and studio production wherever she was, from California to Texas, to Germany, England and Spain. Since 1973 New Mexico has been home where she has found equally superb and diverse art development. She retired as a professor emeritus from the University of New Mexico in 2000.
Currently, Dianna shows at Corrales Bosque Gallery, The Shomaker Studio & Gallery in Placitas, and at a variety of art competitions. Her work also hangs in the Encaustic Art Museum in Santa Fe and in private collections in the U.S. and abroad.
Statement
Welcome to my art world. I invite you to become acquainted with my work and what it means to me, and further your appreciation for the abstract art that has evolved in tandem with my life.
Not all my work is abstract, as is also true of other artists, but I’m basically an intuitive soul. I love a good puzzle. That’s what art is, the unravelling of a puzzle through curiosity, experimentation, and observation. But most importantly to me, it is my intuition that drives what I do.
Now why, you may ask, is that of value for you when viewing my art. Where does it fit in with your impressions? Paintings are powerful tools for my ability to convey, to give me a voice for my inner world. That is the key to unraveling my art. It is as close as I can come to communicating meanings that are too nebulous to put into words.
I bring to the room a very diverse set of experiences throughout my lifetime and my values are based on that. Decisions weren’t always about art but art has always been a driving force. That is also true for the viewer. We are each wonderfully unique to our background. Treasure that uniqueness.
Ultimately, I paint because it beckons me down a pathway of exploration and understanding in this complex world. It is my continuing education. I consider a work successful when abstraction provokes and teases me, and hopefully the viewer, too; when it invites everyone into the unfolding drama on the canvas. Ultimately, I want it to be an enjoyable and enlightening journey for all.