Adrian Deckbar
ADRIAN DECKBAR — Growing up in New Orleans, Adrian Deckbar demonstrated exceptional artistic talent and pursued her interest with degrees in painting and drawing from Tulane University (M.F.A., 1981), San Francisco State University (M.A., 1977), and the University of Southwestern Louisiana (B.A., 1974). She continues to receive acclaim as a gifted instructor and renown as a realist painter in selected juried exhibitions throughout the United States.
Adrian Deckbar uses theatrical lighting and pictures her subjects in bold oblique angles as she creates a sense of drama. She continues to fine-tune her polished, narrative painting style using the mediums of oil and pastel. Her paintings combine the contemporary aesthetics of photography with traditional painting techniques to create psychologically and emotionally-charged realist paintings. Her work has been exhibited extensively throughout the US.
Adrian Deckbar creates psychologically and emotionally charged realist paintings and drawings. The sense of drama in her work is enhanced by strong lighting and figures, which are captured in bold, oblique angles. Using oil, pastel, and gouache, Adrian works in a narrative style. She combines contemporary spontaneity with traditional painting techniques.
At San Francisco State University Adrian studied with Robert Bechtle. His photorealistic paintings captured her imagination and she polished her exacting techniques that seem to blend the best of photography and painting. She sets up order by photographing the painting before it is ever begun on canvas. She catches a moment in time, a fly in amber. Her cropping of the images brings the viewer into the painting as much by what is visible as by what is not. What does that woman see from her balcony? Is she watching someone leave or is she waiting for someone to arrive? Perhaps both. After the establishing shot, Adrian proceeds to use either pastels or oils to capture the textures of the environment.
For Adrian Deckbar, the act of painting is an exploration of the self. The painting becomes a map of self-discovery. When the artwork is successful, the viewer is able to read this map and understand the artist’s intention. Adrian’s intention is for a realization of the uniqueness and value of each moment as we relate to each other and the world in which we live. She hopes to inspire a moment of contemplation where time stops, finally leaving us with time to think.
Adrian’s work is in numerous public and private collections, nationally and internationally, including The New Orleans Museum of Art, The Ogden Museum of Southern Art, Breneau University, and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.
 |
 |
"NAPOLEON HOUSE AFTERNOON" by Adrian DeckbarGiclée on Canvas36 x 24 |
LAUNDRY OFFERINGGiclée on Canvas34x26 |
