New England Serenity:
Painter Linda Dessaint's Nature Scenes on Display at Conservation Center
CONCORD – Nov. 5, 2013 – Painter Linda Dessaint of Antrim posts a Georgia O’Keefe quote prominently at the top of her website: “Come quickly. You mustn’t miss the dawn. It will never be just like this again.” It’s a summation of her own approach to painting scenes from nature in New England.
She’ll be driving or walking by a scene that strikes an emotional chord and immediately get the urge to share that scene, which seems all the more beautiful because it’s sure to change with the light, the weather or the seasons. “It can really stop you and make you see it like you’ve never seen it before,” Dessaint said.
An exhibit of Dessaint’s oil and pastel paintings, “New England Serenity,” is on display at the Conservation Center in Concord until the end of December. Dessaint said she chose paintings for this exhibit that were in keeping with the venue, the headquarters of the Society for the Protection of NH Forests.
“I wanted it to be about the forest and the animals that live there, and to show their fragile nature, their beauty, and the need to protect them,” she said.
Whether her subjects are maples ablaze in the fall, quiet country roads, fields of flowers, turtles basking on a log or a family of geese swimming on a pond, Dessaint’s paintings evoke a feeling of tranquility that can only be found in nature.
“I always hope that people will have a connection emotionally when they look at my paintings, like I do when I paint. I’m trying to touch the heart because that’s where I paint from,” she said.
Dessaint was born in Peterborough, now lives in Antrim and has lived in New England all her life, taking inspiration from this region’s landscapes and changing seasons. She works from her studio, Linda Dessaint Fine Art, on Antrim’s Main Street and sells her paintings online as well. She is a member of the New Hampshire Pastel Society, the Monadnock Area Art Association and the Pastel Painters of Maine. For more information about her work, visit www.lindadessaint.com.
The exhibit will be open for viewing Monday through Friday from 9 am to 5 pm in the Conservation Center Conference Room, located at 54 Portsmouth St. in Concord. The Conference Room is used for meetings, so please call (603) 224-9945 before visiting.