Featured Artist Lisa C. Sachs

Mixed media artist Lisa C. Sachs presents a fascinating and colorful collection of figurative collage work. Visit her website to view more of her art.

 

 

I started off as an aspiring painter attending the Rhode Island School of Design back in 1975. But I quickly switched my major to Architecture during my sophomore year because I found problem solving much more fulfilling.

 

 

I’ve led an illustrious career as an architect and construction manager. After merging my firm with an international company over fifteen years ago, I now have the time, financial independence, and health to return to my painterly roots.

 

 

I was born and raised outside Boston until I was ten when my family moved to Paris. My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in her mid-30’s. Doctors told my father she likely had only a few years to live. He sold the house in a day, his business to his brother-in-law, and moved the family to Paris since my mother loved to cook.

 

 

We spent four adventurous years abroad. First in Paris, then Geneva and we finally moved to Israel before returning to the U.S. Happily, my mother defied any medical predictions, and even outlived my dad.

 

 

The Impressionist period has always captivated me. Living in Paris likely heavily influenced my appreciation for French impressionism. While an image can be captured in a photograph, I believe the mood of the moment is best expressed through collage using brightly colored and patterned papers with soft pastels and acrylics.

 

 

People always ask me about my process. Surprisingly, I fell into making this new work only recently and strictly by accident at the start of 2023.  What kickstarted this new process?

 

 

During the pandemic, my plein air painting group started to meet monthly via Zoom, generating new topics each month. When the leader of the group died suddenly of a heart attack after contracting COVID, we assigned Urbanscapes as the next topic to honor Rick, a city planner.

 

 

Shortly thereafter, my daughter bought some amazing handmade papers from Nepal for my birthday. This was after she received my holiday gift which was wrapped in handprinted paper made using my linocut pattern of poinsettias.  The brightly colored Nepalese papers inspired my first piece in 2023 titled, Urbanscape.

 

 

In under eight months, I’ve completed at least forty 20”x 30” collages. I start off with a twenty to twenty-five minute life drawing, sketched during a weekly live model studio session. Then I cut the figures out and place them on the floor to see what stories they inspire. One or two are selected, and then I choose my color palette.

 

 

That’s when the creations come to life. But what excites me the most is the problem-solving aspect of this new work. Recreating the effect of a straw hat or basket, or a steel window frame, reminds me of my architectural model building days.

 

 

I’m not sure how long this phase will last and how many more of these types of collages I will produce. So far, I’m enjoying the journey and haven’t tired of it yet. The models spark my early interests in paper dolls and set design, but most of all they satisfy my passion to problem solve, completing a full circle – from artist to architect to builder back to artist.

 

Lisa C. Sachs invites you to follow her on Instagram.

 

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