Lois Silver

Seattle-based painter Lois Silver is known for deftly revealing complex drama in a single, lushly rendered moment. Her paintings encourage viewers to supply a narrative based upon their personal experiences. Like the arrested movement in a film still, the figures are captured mid-pose, sure to reanimate their narrative through the imagination of the viewer. The dynamic, yet intimate tableaux are influenced by the Lois Silver’s love of cinema and the very human drama Silver captures as a freelance courtroom artist. Silver says of her experience as a courtroom artist, “This causes me to look at people differently and focus my attention on how character is revealed through body language and the quick gesture.”

Favorite subjects include nightclubs, diners, intimate parlor settings and Seattle landmarks. At times cheerful, other times somber or mysterious, these scenes peer into private and public environments. Her works often betray a tension between the personal entanglements amongst the depicted characters and a sense of isolation.

Silver uses her fingers, rather than a brush, to apply the vibrant oil bar pigment, which she utilizes to simplify shapes, establish gestures and convey body language. By first laying down the basic forms in this gestural manner, Silver ensures that emotion resonates from the painting’s innermost layer. Details are later added to further inflect the scene with Lois Silver’s unique sense of mood. The features of her figures may be abstracted intentionally or given exaggerated proportions in order to heighten visual tension.

Lois Silver’s paintings may be found in many corporate collections, including those of the University of Washington Medical Center, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Nordstrom, Safeco, Swedish Medical Center, and Zymogenetics. Silver’s work is part of many collections of private individuals throughout the United States and Canada. Harris Harvey Gallery, previously Lisa Harris Gallery, has mounted solo shows of Silver’s work since 1990.