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An artist whose life is defined by resilience and observation, Patricia Sweet discovers beauty in the rugged and the refined. Her artistic journey began at age five, sparked by gifts of brushes and canvas from a grandmother and the joyful instruction of Bob Ross via rabbit-ear television. However, it was a childhood diagnosis of a rare bone disease that truly cemented Patricia’s path; confined to isolation, art provided a quiet solace, allowing creativity to flourish when physical activity could not. By age nine, She held her first solo exhibit at a local library.
Having fully overcome those early physical challenges, Patricia now embraces an active, adventurous lifestyle that directly fuels the work. From hiking high peaks to kayaking to remote islands, the artist goes to great lengths to capture the world’s beauty. This journey has spanned across America and the oceans reaching Europe and beyond.
A 4th generation Frank Vincent DuMond student, Patricia was mentored by a group of 3rd generation painters in New Hampshire. Utilizing the renowned Prismatic Palette with personal modifications to enhance depth and atmospheric perspective, Patricia specializes in capturing distant landscapes and subtle, defining light. Now based in North Carolina, she divides time between the studio and plein air excursions, dedicated to interpreting the majesty of the Blue Ridge and Smoky Mountains.
Artist Statement
I strive to learn and seek inspiration from the great masters of the past. I have a respect for their commitment to excellence and attention to detail. Within every painting, I desire to capture a pristine moment in time, as the great masters did, so that the viewer can experience the same beauty of a location that captured me as I stood in awe and led me to paint it.
I prefer to paint “en plein air” so that I can experience the beauty of my subject first hand. I feel an excitement when it has taken some effort to get to the subject. The seclusion gives me the ability to digest my surroundings and experience the landscape more intimately. My greatest days are when I can pack a lunch, take a hike, paddle my kayak, and find a place to be still and paint. I love to be surrounded by the flurry of activity that nature provides. I listen intently to the shared communication between wildlife, feel the warmth of the sun, how the soft breeze felt on my skin, see how the sun danced on the water and illuminated the trees. I hope to capture and record all these things from that day in the painting I am creating.
Often, I search for a natural light effect to spotlight an element of my subject so that it draws the viewer’s attention into the depths of the painting. I continually strive to create distance and dimension in my paintings and I find that everyday I learn something new.
This tonal oil painting unfolds in golden ochres and deep browns, capturing the moment just before the sun slips beyond the horizon, a faint glimmer of reflected light lingering on the water.
Born from a dream, this tonal oil painting depicts a lush, timeworn tree. Subtle variations of value in a restrained brown palette evoke memory, atmosphere, and a sense of quiet presence.
This tonal oil painting traces the winding curves of the Blue Ridge Parkway, inviting the viewer into a drive that feels suspended in time. A restrained palette of warm browns and subtle shifts in value conjure memory and atmosphere, creating a quiet sense of presence. I invite the viewer to go back in time to a place once known and felt again in passing.
This atmospheric warm tonal oil painting reveals the layered mountains of the Blue Ridge Parkway as they dissolve into drifting mist. A single ray of sunlight falls gently across the foreground, slipping in behind the trees and offering a quiet moment of warmth, where time seems to pause and the landscape breathes.
A warm brown tonal mountain range recedes into the distance, its layered forms softened byatmosphere. Foreground trees rest in shadow as a bright, luminous light rises behind the mountains, creating an ethereal glow that feels both fleeting and timeless.
This oil painting is an ode to the drama of high-altitude landscapes and the creation of vast distances. I focus on capturing the interplay between shadow and light, using a soft tonal palette to translate the harmonious, atmospheric glow. By muting the tones, I aim to replicate the haze of the mountains, allowing the illumination to emerge gently from the canvas.
