I seek to convey what is in my mind's eye, some fragment of what's in my field of vision, or what I see in dreams. I dream frequently of paintings, get up and make a sketch and then later can make it into a painting. I take my imagery from artifacts and architectures of many diverse cultures, countries and historical periods.

My art is mystical in that it seems to come from out of nowhere. An image comes to mind, I draw it, then another. The picture "comes to light," develops as the photographic paper comes to light in the developing bath. The colors, values and chroma relationships develop in the same way.

My first influence was Paul Klee. I read "The Thinking Eye," his theories about line and color, and compositional development. Also, I was influenced by Miro and Kandinsky. Then I began to look at Naïve and Folk Art, from which I took the idea that I could follow my own ideas. I developed a sort of lexicon of images, which I work from, change to suit my meanings. These are generally symbolic or simply suggestive.

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As a young child, growing up in Nebraska, watching cloud formations was a favorite diversion from reality. The constant change of composition was both spiritually intriguing and fascinating. Formations were abundant and imagination unlimited. This developed my sensory awareness and although I did not have the time or opportunity to actively pursue my desire to place my perceptions on canvas, this intense interest persisted. It has since graduated to “ cave wall paintings.” There is an ethereal aspect to this transition. As a result, painting cave walls has resulted in various tangible representations.

I consider my Mother my muse. She had a sensitive nature and a philosophy of life that enriched by spirituality. She worked from the premise of an Indian prayer, “Grant that I may not criticize my neighbor until I have walked a mile in his moccasins.”

Although I have only been drawing and painting for slightly over four years, I am finally fulfilling my life long dream. My paintings are goal oriented with spiritual overtones. I appreciate the combination of realism, abstraction and insinuation of a story.

Some say Randy Siegel’s paintings are “postcards from the psyche.” Rich in symbols, Siegel’s work dives deep below the surface into the soul. He is influenced by the rawness of outsider art and the intimacy of portraiture, which he has collected for nearly thirty years. “Like meditation, art helps the unconscious become conscious,” Siegel explains. "Art can be a form of self-discovery. Through art, the many aspects of Self come to light."

Siegel often paints over his older paintings. It’s not unusual for three of four paintings to be underneath the surface of a single piece. “Each story builds upon the previous story, not unlike the stories of our lives.”

An intuitive artist, rarely does Siegel begin a painting with an outcome in mind. "One color signals another, and one image invites a second, until the painting tells me, 'I am complete.’”

Randy Siegel has studied at the Chicago Art Institute, University of Georgia School of Art, Instituto Allende (San Miguel, Mexico), Naropa University, A-B Tech and River’s Edge Studio (both in Asheville, NC), and the Ringling School of Art. He and his Dalmatian, Lucy, live in the mountains of western North Carolina.

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From early childhood I have had an affinity for and love of animals. Nature and pets became very important for support, validation of the goodness of life and the creator and a source of healing during a traumatic childhood. I have always had a number of pets in my life and bred African parrots for 20 years starting in the 70’s. I now have only 3 cats and 3 frogs!

I majored in Biology in college and became fascinated by microscopes and what I could learn about life from magnification. My eye series grew out of a long held fascination with eyes as “the windows to the soul”. I also worked for several years as a veterinary ophthalmology technician which gave a new dimension to that interest. Later I learned how important eyes are in painting portraits, for if the eyes are not painted accurately, the whole portrait does not work. My eye series was a natural outcome of these many influences.

My art usually concerns the things I love in life: people, animals and nature. Since I started painting 8 years ago, I have tried several painting mediums. I started with acrylics for several years, taking up watercolor in the fall of 2007 at Penland School and I am now enjoying the challenge of egg tempera, the world’s oldest kind of painting. I am usually looking for a new perspective in my work, a new way to push the medium, or a new size of work for emphasis. It is my hope that my paintings will lead viewers to appreciate the incredible variety in nature, it’s fragility in today’s world and our need to preserve these many fascinating forms of creation.

Isabel Taylor
Asheville, NC
828-298-4004