I asked Lola to talk a little about her process, music, and this particular painting:
What’s your preferred medium?
I tend to switch back and over from oils to acrylics all the time. They are very different paints and I do love them both. I love the quickness of acrylics, and the depth and quality of oils.
How do you approach/start a painting?
I’m not a planner by nature and painting is no different. I never really have a set way to approach a painting and I never know what way I will start until I literally have the canvas in front of me. My painting will be usually be inspired by a comment or thought or a past experience.
Sometimes I will grab the first thing that comes to hand and begin to vigorously apply paint. I will try to get as much done without stopping to think, letting my hands do their thing so to speak. Then I start to rework the whole piece, working backwards I suppose, covering areas, applying glazes, etc.
Other times I will be more much more controlled in my approach, carefully considering every line I create.
I move around a lot in my studio, so you could find me sitting on the floor painting, standing up, sometimes in front of the easel or sometimes sitting at a table. I think all these factors also play a part on how I approach a painting.
What inspired “Red Lady Danger”?
A friend of mine said one time “I don’t feel dressed without my red lipstick” – her armor – she called it. Dressed for whatever the day would bring, “don’t f**k with me, can’t you see I’ve got my red lipstick on!” Hence ‘Red Lady Danger’! With that on my mind, this painting came about…
Do you listen to music while painting? If so, what’s on your playlist?
I have many playlists on my Spotify, I love all genres of music! But when in the studio painting I only ever listen to the radio.
After coming from a job (teaching) where I encountered probably over 100 people every day to working on my own in a studio, I find the various radio programs keep me from getting lonely all day long! They also keep me up to date with everything as I don’t watch much T.V.
Who is your favorite living contemporary artist?
I admire the work of so many artists it’s a difficult question to answer. The first name that springs to mind is Brooke Wandall. I adore her paintings.
>>> BUY Red Lady Danger print by Lola Donoghue: $25 at Sebastian Foster
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