Artist Statement

I aim to create a sense of connection between the viewer and the natural world. These paintings invite a pause, a moment of recognition, where light, colour, and movement feel familiar and immersive, like a distant memory from time spent outdoors.

My work is shaped by close observation of organic forms and the shifting qualities of light and shadow. Each season offers a different palette, often pushing beyond what we expect nature to look like, and I follow those moments where colour feels heightened or surprising. Working on wood panels, I build landscapes through layers of transparent oil paint and opaque passages, allowing the surface to move between clarity and obscurity. Bold marks establish structure, while pulled and softened areas create a sense of reflection, atmosphere, and motion.

In select works, Gartner Howe revisits paint-by-number imagery from her childhood, reinterpreting these early compositions with the depth of her current practice. These paintings carry a personal story, bridging past and present, with moments left intentionally unfinished as a reflection of continued growth and exploration.

These paintings move between representation and sensation. They reference specific experiences—light on water, wind through trees, fog rolling across a landscape—while leaving space for the viewer to complete the moment. The goal is not to describe a place exactly, but to recreate the feeling of being in it, where perception shifts and time briefly slows.