OshkoshNorthwestern092706

Life & Style	Oshkosh Northwestern		Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Posted September 27, 2006 Artist Finds Inspiration Everywhere By Sarah Owen of The Northwestern Carrying a paper grocery bag of art supplies, a thin easel and tea glass filled with brushes, Leif Larson spent a mid-morning last week under blue skies, trying to find the humor in the landscape. Something piques his interest in the trees – splashes of yellow, green and red perched above the inlet to Miller's Bay in Menominee Park. Maybe it's the gaping hole in the center, he says. He sets up on the sidewalk, propping up a colorless 11 x 14 canvas. The disciplined, ever- learning soul, the 25-year-old UW-Oshkosh fine arts grad paints like its second nature, at home in every brushstroke. It's not so much the detail in the leaves that concerns him, he explained. It's more about faceting a poetic dialogue between trees, buildings, structures – investigating how they're connected and finding the drama of a scene. "That little shadow off that pole?" He points to a subtle gray area on the grass. "I love that kind of stuff."		Leif Larson paints on an 11 X 14 canvas in Menominee Park last Wednesday. The artist is an alum of the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh's fine arts program, and has his work displayed at several galleries throughout the state. Joe Sienkiewicz/ of The Northwestern
		At a glance Name: Leif Larson. Age: 25. Artistic endeavor: Acrylic painting. Subjects: Larson paints subjects that catch his eye or abstracts that play on the interaction of colors. See his work: Around the state, including at Jambalaya Art Cooperative, 413 N. Main St. in Oshkosh; and Milwaukee's Inside Out Gallery. For more info: www.leiflarson.com
Larson has taken to the outdoors to paint his second seasonal series. "I've never actually done fall. It has a whole new set of rules with colors and leaves, so it'll be interesting," he said. In January, he braved the height of Wisconsin winter, finished seven small paintings and had plenty passersby wondering if maybe he was a little crazy ("No, no, no," he insisted). "It's a disciplinary thing if anything, a chance to explore landscape in winter, because it's completely different," he said. "I learned a lot about myself, what the heck I'm doing." Learning is life. Whether it's painting at a fashion show, sitting in his studio at home or standing in the middle of Menominee Park – he never stops tweaking his technique or experimenting. And it's paying off. He's been in Oshkosh's Gallery Walk the last five years, shown his work around Wisconsin and gets by just fine selling one to two pieces a month. He's also a much talked-about talent from Appleton to Oshkosh and Milwaukee, and among fellow artists. Still-life artist Nancy Marks was taken with his work at the Jambalaya gallery in August. "I was very impressed with his use of color," she said. "How inventive he is with making common- place subjects interesting." Drawing since he was 8 and painting since 12, Larson has a diverse palette. Pieces like 2006's The Lecture (displayed at the Oshkosh 100 during the October Gallery Walk), 2005's Color of Living and 2004's Re-Leif speak about his fascination with people, places, even the way colors work together. "To pick a favorite would deny myself what I love about art: The opportunities," he said. Sarah Owen: (920) 426-6671 or sowen2@thenorthwestern.com.