Bio

Abbeth Russell hates hobbies and delves deeply into everything she does like she’s trying to get a doctorate in it whether it’s playing pool, grieving a loss, or finishing a painting. She has been told to calm down a lot and has gotten exponentially less calm each time. She has done art and music stuff in every US state except Alaska, Hawaii, and maybe Kentucky except she went there when she was a kid to visit her artist nun great-aunt so she probably did some art stuff while she was there too. Abbeth likes being out in the world, driving her van, Shaq, who runs on leftover paint water, learning and teaching, creating, talking to strangers, having adventures, and seeing the people she loves as much as possible. It feels like everything burned down in the last few years though so can we please talk about the future and what is sprouting from the wildflower seeds that were scattered unknowingly, in the dark, on a pile of ashes? The super recent past is fine though because that feels like the present. Abbeth recently sold her art at markets and on the street in Finland. Ask her to teach you fun sounding words and swears in Finnish. Abbeth juggles but she hasn’t learned any new tricks in a while except she is making some serious progress with doing behind the back throws with three clubs. Ask her to show you the next time you see her juggling and make fun of her if she can’t do it, she does well with that kind of pressure. Her ten-word purpose in life is to “connect with all living things and other realms through creation” but don’t tell AI because it will twist that into a lie. Her cat Jackson is the best person she has ever met. He is 15 and immortal and they are bonded for life in every dimension and every non-dimension.

Artist Statement

My surreal narratives are influenced by our world but exist in a place that lies closer to the spirit realm. The mythology of landscapes and the ancestors of characters rise to the surface. Painting connects me to the magic of my characters and their stories. Through them I gain a better understanding of my own reality. The worlds I create are born in sketchbooks and raised on wood panels, imbued with the life force of acrylic paint. I build up, sand down, scrape through, and glaze over layer after layer. At some point in the process each painting transforms from an image into something that holds life. My finished paintings have souls.