Donna Palmersheim
I knew from very early that I loved visually creative activities, so pursuing art and design was the perfect career choice. After earning a BA in Graphic Design, I spent the next 20+ years creating a wide variety of both print production and motion graphic designs that included commercials, show promos, and corporate communications media for design groups and post-production companies.
More recently, this same desire to create pleasing visual images has lead me to express myself in oil paints. For the past six years, I have been working as a studio artist at Holder Dane Gallery and Art Studios in historic downtown Grapevine, Texas.
Since having had many birds as pets, I feel a special connection with birds which are a central theme in my art. I’ll often become attached to my paintings and keep them for myself. I have too many now.
My desire when painting birds is to capture their mysterious, intelligent, and beautifully delicate qualities. It’s a wonderful feeling attempting to capture the graceful freedom and endless colorful characteristics of this abundant species.
Painting koi fish and water lily pads are also favorite subjects because I can sense this peaceful motion while painting flowing fins quietly gliding through transparent reflective water.
Rarely do I find a photo that is a perfect subject for paintings so I will use my graphic design background to combine different birds, skies, landscapes to create the perfect image that inspires me to paint.
I listen to inspirational music while painting and enjoy shutting my mind off to the world while focusing in the moment on color, shapes, and values of an inspirational subject.
It’s a wonderful release to be in the flow of creating something beautiful. My favorite state of being is when I am creating. I hope you enjoy my art as much as I enjoy painting it.
