The natural beauty of wood is an integral part of RenéeRose’s work. An outdoor photographer as well as a painter, she uses wood as both a material to paint on and a tool with which to apply her paints, letting her “special connection with trees” influence every aspect of her work. Allowing the natural grain of the wood to shine through, RenéeRose echoes the texture of that grain in the lines of her images, giving each both a natural, rough-hewn ambiance and a refined delicacy. In addition, her subtle palette effectively plays off the qualities of her materials.
But the artist’s feeling for nature is just one aspect of her paintings. Her subject matter is centered around music, both through portraits of such classic figures as Louis Armstrong and Miles Davis, and close-up looks at the hands of musicians in the act of creation. The sense of concentration and process that is such a strong part of her artistic method also comes through powerfully in those depictions, resulting in complex, multi-layered images that leave a lasting impression on the viewer.