Today we’d like to introduce you to Lisa Shimko.
Hi Lisa, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Growing up in rural Pennsylvania, childhood highlights were roaming in the woods and fields around my house, digging for bones, collecting rocks and observing the wildlife surrounding me.
Drawing and painting is something I did from the earliest age I can remember–drawing horses, wildlife, dream houses & floorplans, just constantly curious about everything. An early epiphany was from middle school science class, looking at stream water through a microscope and seeing all the micro-organisms, how much life was in a drop of water, appreciation of the different perspectives of seeing nature close-up to a wider view.
I am perpetually still curious about everything, which reflects in the multiple themes in my art– rarely do I stay in one lane. Our human relationship to nature is a constant theme.
Lisa has lived in South Carolina since 2000, from the Lowcountry to upstate, where the waterways have been a constant inspiration.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Being an artist has taught me to embrace uncertainty and change. Financially, there is less stability so adaptation is needed. Luckily part of this flexibility is fed by curiosity and learning new skills, where I thrive.
In addition to my painting education (BFA), I studied Art Therapy, worked with various non-profits using art for community building, worked in restaurants (back & front of the house), theatre set painting, fabric design, flower arranging, teaching (kindergarten – adults) highlighting STEAM, and so on….
Though it can be exhausting at times not having stability, working in so many different fields over the years to support my art has given me a broader insight of the world which feeds my paintings too.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Paintings stem from pondering our human relationship to the natural world whether it is polluted waterways to how we use animals as symbols to express our emotion .
My childhood coping mechanisms of creating imaginary worlds and falling into daydreams is still my favorite mode of painting (and thus therapy).
Filtering the world via a stream-of-consciousness reverie, the absurdities all make sense without the usual linear fences of reasoning.
I am not seeking a hyper-real truth, but instead, swimming in the hazy pool of dreamscapes to see what my third eye of wonder attracts.
Essentially, my paintings are mind-frolicking-idea-collages pieced together after wandering around woods and waterways, then scratching an infinite-learning-itch in the natural sciences, sociology, philosophy, mythology, anthropology, psychology, current events, etc.
Paintings span wildlife with a surreal twist to vibrant abstracts reflecting waterways, all embracing vibrant colors and openness with child-like curiosity.
I offer my paintings as an impetus for viewers to slip into their own daydream story.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
I have been lucky to have so many helpers along the way.
From my mother replacing crayons with oil pastels and teaching me my first color theory lesson as a child, teachers in the public schools I attended, advocates who have given me shows, and everyone who has purchased my art over the years. I am constantly feeling gratitude to those that have supported and continue to support my art.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.shimkoart.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shimkoart/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shimkoart
- Other: https://www.shopshimkoart.com/
