BEAUTY: Painting--Julie Heffernan

This past November, I stumbled across the piece of art seen above on someone's blog. I was stunned at the beauty but unfortunately, the piece was uncredited so I was unable to explore the artist and any more work from that artist. I posted it anyhow, in hopes that someone would recognize it and let me know the name of the talented person who did it, but to no avail. And then today, I found a similar piece on a different blog and it was credited! I Googled the artist and mystery solved! It--and all the art in this post--is by the incredibly talented Julie Heffernan.

I love her mix of romatic realism, surreal/ dream images (according to an interview with Heffernan, may of her works come to her in dreams), and an Old Masters-classicism. The piece above, entitled "Great Scout Leader III" and the next two below were painted for her sons who are reaching their majority. They are touching tributes not only from a mother to a son, but also serve as an allegory for youth being responsible for the care of the world. I especially like how the Great Scout Leader can literally lift the mantle of the earth like a rug, to make repairs, while he carries all the elements of reality on his back in a wicker pack that extends beyond the edge of the picture. It's a grand idea and an intimate sentiment.

The rest of her work is fascinating not only visually but for the fact that they all seem to be named "Self Portrait As--" fill in the blank. I am so intrigued by the idea of making everything a self portrait. In a way, I suppose everything an artist makes is a self portrait in that the artist is expressing a certain point of view, and something that the artist is seeing through his or herself. It is the reaction of the artist to the world around, and how that world effects the artist. In her world, everything is a kind of cornucopia... and chandeliers drip color, light, and flames while birds flee the scene. Beauty and destruction...


Top to bottom: Great Scout Leader II; Budding Boy; Boy In Flight; Self Portrait As A Gorgeous Tumor; Self Portrait As Dirty Princess With Tail; Self Portrait As Infants in Purgatorium; Self Portrait As Everything That Rises; Study For Self Portrait As Hobbyist; Self Portrait As Wunder Kabinet

Julie Heffernan at PPOW Gallery
Julie Heffernan at Mark Moore Gallery