Lisa Britton: Down the Rabbit Hole
Seattle-based oil painter Lisa Britton brings her day dreams to life by using her love of rabbits and flowers to share her imagination with others. Britton’s whimsical artwork often relies on deep saturation and rainbows to convey the dream-like state apparent in much of her work, offering a unique spot viewers can drop in to in order to experience her fanciful world.
How and when did you know you wanted to be an artist?
I don’t know if I could pinpoint a specific time. I studied interior architecture for four years but ended up changing majors after all that time. I took a painting class thinking I wanted to keep developing drawing/creative skills if I ever wanted to pursue anything architecture related again, and I was hooked.
Where do you find inspiration for your work?
Anything with bright, saturated colors! And any cute rabbit, obviously :)
What themes do you explore in your work?
My current body of work is about escape/day dreams, and loosely tied to animal rights.
What does a typical day in the studio look like for you?
I have a full time job, so studio time can vary day to day. I usually log off work sometime between 5-6, go to the gym, hang out with my husband and dogs, and then start working on something art related. Sometimes that is a multi-hour painting session, other times looking for and submitting to art calls, or working on blog posts for Pretty Girls Making Cool Shit.
Did your experience interning for photographer Isabelle Graeff and painter Ross Walker in Berlin affect your work/practice? How?
I wouldn’t say the experience necessarily influenced my work, but more influenced my perspective and understanding of working artists. Outside of my college professors and some classmates, I hadn’t yet met anyone who was regularly creating and showing their work. It was a life I was interested in but didn’t know if it was real or if anyone actually lived that life.
Isabelle is a very smart and generous person. She let me use an empty space as my own art studio, which was the first time I had a studio space that wasn’t at school or in my apartment, and her assistant encouraged the interns and everyone helping out with her show to curate our own pop up exhibition. It was so much fun and such a cool experience!
What advice did someone give you that impacted your work or career as an artist that you would like to pass on?
My mentor, Alex Garant, is a brand and marketing guru! If anyone has the chance to listen to her talk or pick her brain about the subjects, do it! She has given me great advice and feedback about how to get specific about my brand as an artist.
Something Jennifer Sincero wrote that really resonated with me is “You can have excuses or you can have success; you can't have both.”
What are your future goals and aspirations?
To continue to create, show, and sell my own work, and continue to develop Pretty Girls Making Cool Shit. We took a hiatus but recently relaunched our website with a new logo and new look, and are working on putting out our first call for an online art show with PGMCS!
Website: www.lisabritton.com
Instagram: @lisabrittonart