Denise Nomura’s Stillness Runs Deep, a 12” x 16” giclée on fine art paper, evokes the deep calm within Lake Tahoe and the luminous sky above it.
Lamorinda Arts Council President Denise Nomura is featured in a solo show for the month of April in the virtual Art Gallery at the Orinda Library.
Nomura was introduced to the world of art at a very young age by her grandmother, an accomplished painter. Together, they mixed paint, created collages, and talked about how shadows and light can define artwork. As a child, Nomura loved the process of mixing paint to create new colors and even the smell of the paint. To this day, the process still brings her grandmother to mind. She has no formal academic training but has taken many classes.
“My real passion was launched in Japan when I learned sumie and nihonga water-based painting,” she said. After seven years in Japan, she returned to the U.S. When she tried oil painting, she loved it immediately. Her focus continues to be capturing moments of time in the natural world. Since she often travels to Tahoe, you will see oil paintings of the lake, rocks and sky with an emphasis on clouds. She admits to a total obsession with clouds at the moment.
“Photographs of nature were not enough for me. I work to replicate what I experience in nature on canvas. I paint soothing, calming scenes so that I can come back to them again and again to receive those messages,” said Nomura. Of late, she’s been commissioned to paint lots of little furry animals. She said, “It’s so much fun to see the delight in people’s eyes when they view their little friend on
canvas.”
Nomura often paints with a group led by instructor Gary Bergren at the Walnut Creek Center for Community Arts. They offer ideas and suggestions about how to improve each painter’s work. “The advice is always good and the friendships I’ve made even better,” said Nomura.
“Seeking Nature’s Deep Calm” is her theme for the 12 pieces she is showing. Nomura wants people to know she is still learning and evolving as a painter, like many of her fellow artists. With each painting she gains more knowledge and confidence. Visit
www.lamorindaarts.org/online-galleries/ to view her work.
All Council art exhibits are virtual until COVID-19 restrictions change. To learn more about the Lamorinda Arts Council go to http://www.lamorindaarts.org. For questions email Curator Maggie Boscoe, gallery@lamorindaarts.org or call 925.359.9940.
