Laurinda Phakos O´Connor in Memoriam

Art pastelPastel PainterAmerican pastel painting

Mar 22

This post should have been on my blog a few months ago. And to be honest, I regret not having finished it sooner. I had it pending after some email exchanges with Laurinda O'Connor in which I let her know how much I loved her work. I also told her that I was very interested in sharing her pastel paintings on my website. She was very happy with the idea and responded right away: "Yes, I would love to be on your blog! Will start taking in-process photos. Thank you so much for the opportunity! Your new fan! Laurinda." After that, a Christmas greeting arrived with some of Laurinda's reflections on art: "Looking forward to a new year, I wonder why we create? Is it to hold onto memories or to get lost in them? Is it about playing, experimenting, and expressing ourselves? Or, is it about capturing a feeling and connecting with others through our art?" The in-process photos of some of her work for the post never arrived... And now I understand why.

August Light, Soft Pastel painting on Paper, 12×12 inches, Laurinda O´Connor

I recently learned the sad news of the passing of the great artist Laurinda O'Connor. She was a pastelist like no other, as well as a great teacher and art instructor. You don't have to be famous to be a great artist, and she certainly embodied that. I was fortunate enough to meet her through the Central Mass Pastel Society, where she received one of the first Mamut Awards I gave to the association. Because of her style of painting, I realized my pastels would fit her like a glove. And they did. She had a quick, solid, fresh stroke. A way of painting so spontaneous and light… Each one of her paintings pictures a unique moment in nature, in outdoors.

Her works are the reflection of the impressions that beauty leaves on us in the fleetingness of time. That thing which so many of us would like to capture and which slips through our fingers. But she was able to capture it on paper so that others could enjoy it. She recently wrote: "As a pastel artist, I strive to let simplified strokes of color and line create a path into a scene and moment in time. I push myself to capture the sense I feel from the landscape as well as to create the up-close excitement of color, texture, and expression on the surface of my paper”.

She will be missed.