Bobbe Bergen Dennis
Welcome to the art of B. Bergen Dennis

As with many other artists, my desire to make art began as a child, although there was no influence or encouragement from family to do so. My family stressed a career in music, but there was always in me an urge to draw, to paint, and create visually. This need to create drove me to return to college to study art when the youngest of our four children entered kindergarten. The years devoted to raising my children didn't allow full time participation in producing paintings, but I managed to keep a passion for art as part of my daily schedule.

I choose to paint on linen canvas with oil paint because of the traditional permanence, rich glowing color and expressive texture affforded. My preferred method of working is to paint small landscapes on site, then use them as a reference for the large studio paintings. Sometimes a work is started with oil stick on paper or canvas and used as a sketch for working out a new idea. Regular painting from a model is for me, both necessary and enjoyable. It keeps me honest and ensures that I paint from the truth and reality I observe in life.

The importance of sharing my passion and a strong motivation for my painting is to have an intimate connection with the person who views my work. I want to initiate a conversation with that person and bring him/her into my world. Whether I paint two or three people sitting and talking together, or a solitary figure with unrevealed thoughts, it is my way of searching for the intimacy that I desire in my own relationships. This is what kindles my need to create; breathes life into what I decide to paint.

This intimate conversation is generated by the personal symbolism which is created on canvas; the freedom and space represented by the depth and sweep of a landscape; the invitation for intimacy from a visual touch of a figure; the story told by some treasured personal object in a still life. The tapestry of form and color found in my garden also catches my eye as I often paint the variety of flowers that flourish there.

What is it that ignites the passion within me to speak from the canvas in this way? The passion is inspired by my response to the beauty and wonder of the world in which I live; it comes from living by my strong spiritual values and from savoring each day of life.