Laural Hartman

My work often explores the concept of mapping in the areas of postpartum personal reflections and conversations. I express the layered nuances and complications of life by layering found objects with certain mediums such as oil paint, sticks and wax, color/patterns - attributes that evoke richness, depth, and the urge to touch. I will draw wild gestures and free flowing marks, often letting traces of previous layers remain visible, allowing colors to interact in ways I could not have anticipated. While the process of adding and scraping layers of mediums can be frustrating, the result is much greater with evidence of a memory, experience and existence.

Laural Hartman lives and works as an artist, printer and educator in Rochester, New York. Born to artistic parents in Los Angeles, while in high school, Laural’s series of painted wine boxes earned her California’s Scholastic Gold Key Award. After high school, she moved to Rochester and earned her BFA and MS from the Rochester Institute of Technology. She also studies at the California College of the Arts. Laural currently divides her time between NTID, where she teaches Drawing and Design courses, and as a printer for dirtybeardpress, a boutique studio she founded in San Francisco. Laural’s work has been exhibited at the Minna Gallery, San Francisco; The Berkeley Art Center, Berkeley, California; the Delaplaine Arts Center, Frederick, Maryland; and at the Dyer Arts Center at NTID. She has also been featured on WXXI and the Daily Moth for her art.