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Cindy Briggs Paints her way through life. - Heidi Hiaasen |
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Cindy Briggs Designs Phone: 541-420-9463 Email: cbriggsdesigns@yahoo.com
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Just a few stories from the archives…. |
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Travel as Inspiration By Renee Patrick, Cascade Arts & Entertainment Magazine |
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Cindy Briggs brings a lifetime of artistic influence to her work. She has created a career surrounding her passion in which travel creates the framework for much of her art. Briggs grew up surrounded by a family of artists in her home state of Colorado, and the creative environment has fueled her career through the different stages of her life. After graduating from Brigham Young University with a degree in design and minor in art history, she moved across the country working for different firms as art director for international clients like Levi Strauss & Company, Adobe and Universal Studios.
In the late nineties Briggs made the crossover into fine art, “I taught art classes in elementary through middle school then started working with adults. I traveled to Paris to paint with my aunt and then took a number of workshops from notable artists. Following my dream, I’ve spent the last 12 years painting and teaching. I appreciate that the design field gave me on the job training in conceptualizing, composition and marketing—all which made the transition to full-time painting a natural.
She relocated to Bend from Seattle with her family ten years ago, attracted to the sun, outdoor lifestyle and the sophisticated but small town atmosphere that has inspired her painting, increased by her local involvement in the arts and bolstered her teaching.
Travel features heavily in her work as she explains, “My paintings are a visual journal of my travels and life experiences. My subjects vary from portraits to cityscapes and landscapes, with the majority from Italy, my favorite painting destination for it’s old world culture and architecture….I seek out subjects with character and focus on the dynamic interrelationship of shapes, values and colors. Since my foundation is in design, I carefully plan my composition and colors then free myself to become engaged in the painting process.
Briggs is co-owner of a Seattle based international workshop company, Make Every Day A Painting Workshops. With partner Theresa Goesling, the two have been leading classes/art tours for almost ten years in exotic locals such as Italy, France, Greece, Croatia, Sicily and Turkey. They also teach in Seattle, Bend and Santa Barbara. They have co-authored a book, Make Every Day A Painting, which is used with artists ranging from beginners to professionals. The lessons are focused around drawing and watermedia and strive to make the most of the student’s creative journey.
Briggs thrives in the role of teacher and welcomes the opportunity to be able to share her passion with those looking to advance their skills. She states “As a teacher my focus is to help each student see like and artist, develop confidence in the design and painting skills, and discover their individual style.”
Briggs has a list of impressive accolades surrounding her art. Her paintings have been featured in the national publications, Watercolor Magazine. She Juried local, regional and National shows. She has been juried into the High Desert Museum “Art of the West Show, Richard Schmid Invitational, three recent National Watercolor Society exhibitions and numerous Oregon Watercolor Society Exhibitions. She has won awards in the Northwest Watercolor Society, Eastside Fine Arts Association and Arts Central as well as being a member of the local group, the High Desert Art League.
In June you will be able to view Briggs and Goesling’s art at Sotheby’s with in a show entitled “Side by Side”. She is showing the cover piece, “Biketown USA, at the City all City Walls exhibit through July.
Briggs will have information available for an upcoming workshop in Santa Barbara taking place in November as well as one of her traveling workshops to Portofino and Cinque Terre, Italy in June of next year. Briggs regularly teaches for the Art Station, and has two workshops scheduled for July and a Cascade Fine Art Workshops Plein Air and Studio workshop in October.
For those in Los Angeles, Briggs is involved in a current NWS show and has future exhibits this year scheduled in Colorado and Washington. Briggs and Goesling have multiple demonstrations and workshops scheduled with Daniel Smith in Seattle.
A Well Developed Eye Cindy Briggs Talent Keeps Evolving
By Heidi Hiaasen The Bulletin—GO Magazine
The warm, translucent passages Cindy Briggs paints represent more than just watercolors of European scenes. “I think they represent a journey from one part of my life to another,” said the Bend artist. “Passages are to another place, (always moving forward and appreciating where you’ve been)”. Briggs, who moved to Bend nearly four years ago, began working on the nine images in the series as her two school-age children became more independent. But there’s more to the artist than cobbled streets, brick buildings and cracked windows. “My images have been described as ethereal, sunlit. I look for dramatic composition and a unique perspective. I do a lot of tall narrow paintings,” Briggs, 44, said. “I really look for something that catches my eye...I have to feel inspired by my subject.” The Colorado native remembers always being in art classes, but it was watching an aunt (Ellie Weakley) paint her teenage portrait that made Briggs fall for watercolors. She was awarded an arts scholarship to Brigham Young University, but quickly discovered she needed to study something that would pay the bills. After earning a bachelor’s degree in graphic design and a minor in art history, Briggs started working in advertising. The job took her to Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles. She worked on accounts like Levi Strauss, Adobe, Xerox, Universal Studios and Sunkist. “I had a great career, but I knew before I met my husband that I wanted to paint,” said Briggs, who has been married to Vaughan Briggs for 21 years. When her daughter started third grade in 1997 Briggs quit her job and called her aunt. “I said, ‘I want to paint now,’ and Ellie Weakly told me to come to a workshop in Carmel,” she said. Her aunt told Briggs that she had to be in a show the following summer. Five women from Briggs’ family participated and have done four shows together. The group is gathering in Colorado this week to paint together. Briggs has taken numerous workshops to expand her knowledge. She started teaching art classes to children when her son started kindergarten in Seattle and there wasn’t an art program. It was in Seattle that she got involved with “Reflections,” a national arts program for students, and she is now the chair of the group for the Central Oregon region. “I love working with kids. They do amazing things. They’re so fearless. Adults are too, if you can get them to relax,” said Briggs, who began teaching adults four years ago. “Sometimes I teach the adults the same lessons as the kids. The concepts are the same, no matter how old you are.” She teaches both adult and children’s art classes from her Bend studio, with single drop-in classes accepted. Last fall, she taught a two-week workshop in Provence with her best friend, Theresa Goesling. Pieces from that workshop, “Palettes of Provence,” will be exhibited in April and May at the Sage Café, beginning with an open house on the afternoon of April 16, . The two are planning a similar workshop in Tuscany in June 2006. Though Briggs teaches others she doesn’t miss an opportunity to paint. Watercolor is her medium of choice, but she also works in oils and pastels. Her home studio, with breathtaking views of the Cascades, is where Briggs spends much of her time. When the family built the home a little more than two years ago, Vaughan Briggs said there was no question his wife would have a studio. “I’ve painted in the kitchen, in the corner of the bedroom, wherever I could find a space. We worked really hard to get here. Artists (need their own space) they shouldn’t have to be neat,” said Briggs, who is often working on several paintings at a time. The artist (paints on location and) takes lots of photographs and pieces together elements of different places to form some of her paintings. When she does portraits, she often has two copies going at a time. She will experiment on one before painting on the other—and said the practice piece often turns out better. From the time Briggs moved to Bend, she started volunteering with and joining organizations around town. She joined Arts Central and started the annual juried watercolor and pastel show. (She’s very involved with the High Desert Art League) and does public relations for other artists in town and writes a regular column for the Northwest Watercolor Society and Watercolor Society of Oregon newsletters. She is represented by The Collection Gallery in Bend and will be part of the “Tour of Italy” show in April. As she keeps herself busy, Briggs likes to reflect on her growth as an artist. “As you mature and your eye develops, you realize how much you missed the first time,” she said. “It keeps things new and fresh.” Briggs’ work can be seen at The Collection Gallery, 150 NW Minnesota Ave., Bend, or at www.cindybriggs.com
Cindy Briggs Knows the Language of Art
By Sondra Holtzman, A&E Editor Cascade Arts & Entertainment Magazine, Bend, Oregon Featured Cover Artist
“Every artist dips his brush in his own soul and paints his own nature into his pictures…” Henry Ward Beecher.
A working artist for over 23 years, Cindy Briggs is part of intriguing creative legacy, hailing from a family of artists. Every since she was a teenager, Briggs’ Aunt Ellie Weakley has served as her mentor, along with her 93 year old grandmother who still shows her work (in Cindy’s home state of Colorado.)
“I’m always in anticipation of the next painting and my work has been described as ethereal, stylized realism,” says Briggs. “Painting and teaching energize me and are my passion. My aspiration is to simply keep improving, continuing to soak up experiences, new insights and techniques, and to share the joy of using artistic license.”
Briggs is one of those rare birds who can think with both sides of her brain. After receiving an art scholarship to Brigham Young University, she graduated with a degree in graphic design and worked in advertising as an art director for the next 15 years for a number of reputable agencies. After her children came along, Briggs pursued a career as a freelance designer, writer and public relation specialist, serving clients like Adobe, Levi Strauss, K2 Universal Studios, and Orion Pictures. She and her husband, Vaughan and their 2 children moved to Bend from (Seattle), lured by the small town atmosphere, proximity of family, recreational paradise and great arts community.
As president of the High Desert Art League, she leads a group of professional artists who show throughout the Northwest. Briggs has served as Chair of the annual Watercolor and Pastel Show with Arts Central and the Reflections Arts Program for the Bend-LaPine School District. She has served on the Board of the Northwest Watercolor Society and has earned her NWWS signature membership, having recently had a painting featured in the Spring issue of Watercolor Magazine in an article about the NWWS.
Briggs shares a passion for art with her best friend, Theresa Goesling of Bellevue, Washington. The two have co-authored a book called Make Every Day a Painting. The book covers everything from composition to mixing colors to improvisation and has proven to be an invaluable companion when painting on location or in the studio. “We both had similar careers before painting and have stayed on the same path in advertising, raising children and volunteering while focusing on our goals to paint,” Briggs reflects. “I asked Theresa to take a class with me and we’ve been on the journey every since. Now we teach independently and together in our European workshops and in our communities.” This month, the two artists will teach a Magic Palette Workshop in Tuscany, Italy which promises to be an experience of a lifetime. “I’ve been to workshops that are like boot camp,” Briggs shares. “You set up and paint but don’t really experience the location. In our workshops, we design our days so there is time to both paint and play. We’ll visit towns like San Gimignano, Pienza, Orvieto, Assisi and the sunny beaches of the Tuscan coast while feasting on gourmet meals.”
Magic Palette Workshops are open to all levels of experience and serve as a retreat where students are invited to develop their own artistic style while enriching the spiritual and playful sides of the soul. Having recently completed two tours of Tuscany with Gina’s Italy, Briggs is planning future trips to the Amalfi Coast and Cinque Terre in Italy along with a cruise to Greece.
An artist whose first love is painting in watercolor, the title that graces the cover is On the Road to Pienza. Located in the town of Pienza in the very heart of Tuscany, the house (which is actually quite famous) sits behind a field of poppies. Here is where the artist skillfully applies artistic license; the field of poppies is located somewhere near the house, so she blended the two scenes, resulting in a painting that is a delight to encounter. “People ask me if I paint from photos,” Briggs shares. “I only use them as reference as virtually all of my paintings are blended.” While on location, she creates a myriad of small paintings in her sketchbooks, returning to her studio to create larger works of art.
Aside from being a master watercolorist, Briggs enjoys working in oil and pastel and always appreciates a new challenge. “The failures along with the successes are all beneficial and each step of the journey is worth the challenge,” she says. “I’m invigorated by my students’ successes—it’s incredibly rewarding to see them find their way to their own style. Teaching is my way of passing it on.”
“Happy are the painters, for they shall not be lonely. Light and color, peace and hope, will keep them company to the end of the day.” Winston Churchill
Illustrating Italia
By Andrew Moore The Bulletin—Community Life Bend, Oregon
La dolce vita is Italian for “the sweet life,” and Bend artist Cindy Briggs is painting her way toward it. Later this week, Briggs departs for Italy’s much-romanticized Tuscany region to lead her second watercolor painting workshop of the summer in the sun dappled country. Her first trip this year was in June. Not a bad gig for a former advertising executive and mother of two teenagers who started painting seriously only eight years ago. “I can’t believe I get to do it,” said Briggs. “If you want something, write it down, and if you work for it, it happens. It’s magical.” Well, it helps to have talent, too. Briggs, 46, comes from a family of artists, including an aunt in Colorado, Ellie Weakley, who teaches painting workshops in the US and Europe. In all, Briggs says five relatives, all on her father’s side, are professional artists. As is Briggs, who mainly works in watercolors. She is a signature member of the Northwest Watercolor Society, and also is a member of the Watercolor Society of Oregon and the Plein Air Painters of Oregon. Locally, Briggs shows at the Mirror Pond Gallery in Bend and the Barclay Gallery in sisters, and is a member of the High Desert Art League, an association of professional artists. Briggs does most of her large format paintings from the studio of her Awbrey Butte home, which has a jaw-dropping view of the Cascades. Painting from her smaller plein air sketches, most of her paintings are of a world away, of narrow cobblestone alleys, of vineyards and fields of lavender and of the sort of hilltop towns that dot the Italian countryside. Although she also paints portraits and landscapes inspired by scenes closer to home, Briggs is under a Tuscan spell. Workshop curriculum Briggs studio is full of paintings of Italian scenes, many dashed off during her travels and stacked in a rack in her studio for reference. Many of the sketches were made during her June workshop, when Briggs and her business partner, Seattle artist Theresa Goesling, led a group of 22 people to Tuscany. They stayed at an inn near the town of Seggiano, and over a 2 week period may forays into different towns in the region. The goal for the participants was to paint or explore something new everyday, hence the name of the workshop: “Make Every Day a Painting.” It’s all about making the most of each day. Destinations on the workshop’s itinerary included Florence, Porto Ercole, Monepulciano, Siena, San Gimignano and Cortona, the town where Frances Mayes’ memoir, “Under the Tuscan Sun,” was set. Watercolors Dry fast, making it possible to finish a painting in minutes to a few hours, whereas oil paints can take several days to dry. And a watercolorist can travel light. All Briggs carries with her is a pad of watercolor paper, a few brushes, a watercolor palette, and a collapsible stool. Every day the group, which ranged in ages from 25 to 87, would arrive in a town around 9am and be given some free time to explore. Around 11am Briggs and her partner would give a painting lesson, working out of a manual the two have written, also titled “Make Every Day a Painting.” After the lesson, the students are free to paint whatever they like. Briggs would often set the group up in places with great vistas, such as a balcony overlooking the piazza, or town square, or on a beach with a view of the harbor. Briggs said she encourages her students to soak up the atmosphere of a place, which can be just as important as learning a new technique. “When you take that much time to go somewhere to paint, you want to have the full experience,” she said. “you want to appreciate where you are.”While the students paint, Briggs alternates between instructing and finishing up her own paintings. “I paint, but I don’t always get to finish, because it’s more important to help my students,” she said. Briggs said her workshops are filled with a range of talent. Some of her students are experienced artists, others are beginners. At the end of each day, the group would return to the inn and prepare for dinner. Each of the day’s paintings would be hung, and the students would examine each other’s work. It’s a critical process that benefits the artists, Briggs said. “People learn from each other as much as they learn from us,” Briggs said. Briggs said her June workshop was a resounding success, with no personality or major logistical issues. There wasn’t a bad day,” Briggs said. “It was almost unbelievable.” Briggs grew up in Colorado and attended Brigham Young University. Aware of her artistic genes, she considered a degree in fine art but worried about its financial relevance. She switched her major to graphic design and after graduation, worked as an art director for leading National advertising firms in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle. In 1998 Briggs decided to follow her aunt’s lead. She retired in order to concentrate on painting, and in 2001, Briggs and her husband Vaughan, moved to Bend from Seattle. At her aunt’s urging, in Briggs and Goesling, who also followed the same career path, in 2003 put together their first overseas painting workshop with Magic Palette Workshops, to the Provence region in the south of France. “I’m an artist first, but I love to teach,” Briggs said. “I’m inspired by what the students create. You get back what you give, tenfold.” Briggs upcoming workshop, also in Tuscany is booked. She is planning a workshop next summer, which she hopes to announce in a few weeks. For more information about her workshops and to view sample of her work, visit www.cindybriggs.com |
