Laura Richardson

My husband and I moved to Waynesville NC with our two dogs in 2018. It is our first time living in the mountains and, like almost everyone else, we are in love with life here.

Being a professional artist in Northern Indiana since 1980, my first inclination was to paint these magnificent mountains and skies. But there are so many talented artists in this area who have been living in and painting these mountains for a long time that it just didn’t feel right to me. So, I came up with the idea of painting animals that are native to this area on scenes created on feathers (a Native American inspiration).

I don’t glue any feathers onto my surface. Instead, I stitch the quill to the board which allows the feather to remain free-floating. This creates a challenge for me as sometimes the feather reacts to the acrylic paint by separating. Then I must change the piece by adding additional feathers, moss, or objects found in the woods to cover the separation. The result is that I never know exactly how a piece will end up…an exhilarating feeling of freedom!