Andrea Berger Episode #14: Golden Dreams

Andrea Berger an award winning Canadian landscape and floral painter, has been able to capture some stunning moments across our Southern Ontario landscape. With deep colours, tones and exquisite textures she has discovered the quiet within and loves to share her discoveries.

Challenging herself recently with Plein Air painting and confining herself to 20 minutes has heightened her awareness, piquing her interest, and her attunement with nature and the wonder in everyday spaces. Peeling back the layers to reveal something unexpected. Knowing every journey is unique to each Artist, Berger keeps exploring interiors and cityscapes.

Searching out these hidden and obvious gems around us, Andrea is delighted to share what drives her to push herself creatively in her mediums, her compositions, and what she can leave out to communicate an effective story. Currently following an Artist that is producing fabulous art at 103 - that is part of the wonder and joy.

Transcript

(0:04 - 0:25)
 Hey everyone, welcome back to the Creatively Thinking Podcast. Join Carolyn Botelho as she uncovers the inspirations behind some incredibly creative minds that are orbiting our local communities. Hi Andrea Berger, I am so happy to have you on the show today.
 
 (0:25 - 0:54)
 You are an award-winning Canadian landscape and floral painter based in London, Ontario, Canada. I discovered you because of your passion for the Canadian landscape. Can you share with our audience what initially led you down this career path? Was it your love of working with your hands, your emotional insights or something else? Well, thanks for having me, very happy to be here.
 
 (0:55 - 1:11)
 I think I've always been creative in some capacity, just not artistically. I never felt that I was gifted or had talent for it. I do believe though that creative is a kind of a natural coping mechanism.
 
 (1:12 - 1:26)
 It allows your mind to slow down and concentrate and focus. It's restorative and the act of creating can be something as simple as baking a tray full of muffins. I've always been interested in art, but I've always been an observer.
 
 (1:28 - 2:04)
 I was standing outside the circle looking in and then during the lockdown, I came across an interview with a Canadian artist, Brian Buckrell, and he was describing his art journey that began at the age of 65 after visiting the McMichael Gallery and being inspired by the Group of Seven. He went on to say that he studied and workshopped his way to where he is today, being represented by many top galleries. The notion of being able to learn was a revelation to me and it changed my life.
 
 (2:04 - 2:16)
 And here I am today. That is really powerful to be really inspired at 65, to just pick up art. Oh my, that's really inspiring.
 
 (2:17 - 2:31)
 Yeah. And especially, I totally understand that with the McMichael collection there, that's a really, really, really inspiring collection. It's a wonderful gallery, yes.
 
 (2:32 - 3:07)
 When you paint our Canadian landscape, is there a specific place that intrigues you the most? Do you often travel while you search out your subject matter, or are you inspired more locally? I think as a country, Canada's got many iconic images. We think of Lake Louise or Vancouver Island, Peggy's Cove or Georgian Bay, and I love them all. But I'm making a conscientious decision to be mindful of my carbon footprint.
 
 (3:07 - 3:23)
 And so I'm looking for inspiration closer to home. I believe my job is to find bits of gold in my everyday surroundings, and I want people to see what I see. I want people to know that anywhere can be magical.
 
 (3:24 - 3:38)
 I want them to love where they are and not long to be elsewhere. Right now, I'm enjoying the crop rows that are growing just north of where I live. I'm watching the wheat turn from green to blonde to reddish gold.
 
 (3:38 - 4:00)
 So I'm looking for things really that could be located anywhere, but being seen differently. Yeah, that's a great idea. We need to remember what we have right around us and value it right there, right? Yeah.
 
 (4:01 - 4:13)
 It can be the tree across the road. It can be in the park around the corner. It can be driving at night past the mall with all the lights.
 
 (4:13 - 4:50)
 It's really just accepting where we are and really seeing the beauty that is literally all around us. I wanted to ask you what your thoughts on originality and authenticity are. Do you see any disparity between styles of art? Do you see there being any sort of conflict between realist art and abstraction? Well, I think the art world is a very big place, and I think there's room for everyone and everything.
 
 (4:50 - 5:16)
 And who's really to judge what art is? There are so many different mediums and styles, different genres, different interpretations. Art can be woodworking or sculpture, pottery, painting, or simply the art of orchestrating your garden. I believe it's all very encompassing and very personal, and it's highly subjective.
 
 (5:16 - 5:31)
 And I think Picasso probably said it best when he said, don't think about making art. Just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it.
 
 (5:31 - 5:52)
 And while they're deciding, make even more art. I think that kind of sums that up. I think as an artist, though, on a personal level, there's a division for me between craft, my brushwork or my colors or my form, and the other side of it, which is much more spiritual.
 
 (5:53 - 6:12)
 It's that aspect of interpretation or invention. And for me, that comes down to what my viewpoint is or my interest in a given piece. What is it that I'm trying to express? What is it that I'm trying to show you? Sometimes it's an interest in color relationships.
 
 (6:12 - 6:35)
 Other times it could be the actual subject matter or just simply the way the light bounces off of an object. I think working on a two-dimensional canvas means I'm already abstracting the landscape that I'm looking at. Some of us can go further with the abstraction, and I'm hoping that over time that I can actually see more abstractively.
 
 (6:36 - 6:56)
 I think it's a game between seeing how much we can leave out and still convey our message. And that really interests me. It's how artists are trying to, as you said, just see what you can leave out but still convey the image you're trying to convey.
 
 (6:57 - 7:28)
 It's almost like talking, you know? It's like, what can I say but not say at the same time? Exactly. And I think the more you look at... Some art has more of that in it, even back to some of the masters, where you have the lost edges. You can't see where the sleeve meets the shadow in the wall.
 
 (7:29 - 7:48)
 And so we don't have to put everything in. Sometimes we get so caught up in the details that we're forgetting to look at just the bigger picture. And so that's quite interesting to me, to see how much can we leave out, and yet we can still convey whatever it is we want to express.
 
 (7:52 - 8:49)
 Also, when you do that, or when the artists are doing that, it's leaving it up for interpretation, which also is a whole other way of... A whole other sort of field of just how people are understanding what they're looking at and how their own sort of... Their background, their... Just their everything leads them to understand it in their way. Every single person is different in how they're going to interpret what they see, right? Yes, and I think it makes for a much more interesting experience as the viewer. Because I think then the viewer has to interact a little bit more with the painting to see exactly what it's saying.
 
 (8:50 - 9:09)
 And I think that's interesting. Yeah, it's like the art of seeing is a whole other sort of... It's like a whole other art form in a way, because it's the interpretation of the work that takes on a new life. Yeah.
 
 (9:09 - 9:26)
 Exactly, yeah. You are involved in a number of different art organizations and groups. What have these groups given you in your creative practice? What has been your biggest success as a landscape artist in Ontario? Sounds like a big question.
 
 (9:29 - 9:44)
 It is. I think the benefits of surrounding yourself with other creatives is just that we feed off of each other. I think creativity just breeds more creativity.
 
 (9:44 - 9:56)
 So if you can surround yourselves with those other people that are doing... And it doesn't even have to be the similar work. It can be a different subject. It can be a different type of art form.
 
 (9:56 - 10:12)
 But if they're being creative, I think that just creates even more creativity. Every time I go into a gallery or see an art show, I just can't wait to get back to the studio and paint. It just energizes me.
 
 (10:12 - 10:34)
 And certainly being around other people that speak the same language is very nurturing because there are issues with kind of the solitude of being an artist in your studio. And yet if you speak to other artists, we're all experiencing the same things. We come up against the same barriers and the same obstacles.
 
 (10:35 - 10:48)
 We can understand those problems and we can help to resolve. Not really, but you can offer things. The artist has to resolve for themselves because that's what makes them an artist.
 
 (10:48 - 11:01)
 So I can't look at somebody else's work and say, oh, this is what you have to do because their interpretation is going to be different. So it's very personal. But yet to have that support within the community is very important, I think.
 
 (11:01 - 11:17)
 And that can be your local guild. It can be a Facebook group now. But it's really interesting to see what other people are creating because I think that just motivates me.
 
 (11:18 - 11:25)
 It'll give an idea. It will send me off on a different tangent. And that's very exciting.
 
 (11:26 - 11:46)
 I think success, of course, can be measured in many different ways. Some might say that my participation in Paint Ontario, for example, was a notable achievement, which it was. But I think my personal view of success is in creating something that somebody else has a reaction to.
 
 (11:46 - 11:58)
 I have to create it for me. It has to come from within me. But if I can impact somebody else, then I think I've done my job.
 
 (11:58 - 12:11)
 Then I think I can have been successful, that I've succeeded. Yeah, success is very sort of subjective for everybody. Yeah.
 
 (12:11 - 12:46)
 In one of your bios, you indicate respecting those who came before you artistically. Are there some artists whom you respect their styles or techniques more than others? And if so, what is it that you admire specifically? Well, there would just be so many to list. I mean, from Van Gogh to Soroya to Hockney to the Group of Seven, Andy Warhol, Alex Colville, the Beaver Hall Group.
 
 (12:47 - 13:00)
 There's just so many of them. So many different genres, so many different mediums, so many different styles. What I admire most about them is that they produce art and they share it.
 
 (13:02 - 13:20)
 I admire their bravery, their conviction, and their rule-breaking. It's very easy to be safe, to not push the boundaries, to make a quote-unquote pretty picture. Every day I try to be bolder.
 
 (13:20 - 13:49)
 I think it's the only way that you can find out if you have something unique to say, by peeling back those internal layers to see what's revealed, hopefully something unexpected. I believe that's probably the difference between a painter and an artist. Of course, then we have all the great contemporary artists of today, and they continue to push the boundaries, to be bold, to push color.
 
 (13:49 - 14:13)
 I specifically admire that so many of these very, very successful artists are willing to teach. They share their knowledge, their experience, their techniques, and their insights with us. And their generous teaching really has made my learning that much faster, thereby accelerating my own growth.
 
 (14:16 - 14:37)
 Yeah, it's great to be learning all the time as an artist, right? It just shows you're growing when you're learning. Yes, you're living in a state of complete anxiety all the time. I think that's probably the best way.
 
 (14:38 - 15:02)
 You're uncomfortable because you're never satisfied. You're always wondering, what if? What if I change that? What if I do this? It's both thrilling and frightening all at the same time, I think. That sounds like a really fun place to be, though, in some way.
 
 (15:03 - 15:31)
 Yes. And from this previous question, do you see their influences on translating into your creative practice? Do you see yourself diving into any other mediums as you continue on your creative journey? I think we naturally surround ourselves with that and those which give us joy. And I think that joy can then go into my creative practice.
 
 (15:31 - 15:44)
 But I don't think that you can look at my work and see any one artist in it. I think everyone's art journey is very specific to them. We're constantly given forks in the road and having to choose.
 
 (15:45 - 16:07)
 Which road do we go down? Which path do we take? There are technical elements that we can study, but the rest has to come from within you. I think it's a result of your experiences, of the roads you have traveled, of who you are. It's a bit like a recipe.
 
 (16:07 - 16:22)
 I can take a pinch from this artist and borrow a little bit from someone over there, but you don't end up with the same cake. If you put 30 artists in that field, they're not going to come up with the same painting. And that's the wonder of it.
 
 (16:22 - 16:40)
 That's really the joy. I think there's a natural curiosity to keep exploring, whether it's a different subject matter or the use of different mediums. I think they all bring something new and challenging to the table, and they can change your trajectory.
 
 (16:42 - 17:01)
 Currently, I find myself interested in interiors and cityscapes, in lino cut printmaking. Who knows what I'll be interested in tomorrow? I'm currently enjoying Sarah Eaton on Instagram. She's documenting her father's art journey at the age of 103.
 
 (17:02 - 17:25)
 Anthony Eaton is a Royal Academy artist in the UK, and it's wonderful to see that at 103, he is still engaged, still painting, and still finding wonder in his subjects. I look forward to going down that road and never crossing the finish line. That is amazing.
 
 (17:25 - 17:29)
 103, wow. 103. Wow.
 
 (17:30 - 17:38)
 Yeah, that's truly amazing. And still producing fabulous works. I am in awe.
 
 (17:38 - 18:04)
 She puts one out about every morning, I think, a little video, and it's just wonderful to watch him. He was doing a still-life painting of two shelves that held pottery in his studio, and he was discussing how this reminded him of heaven and earth. And I was just transfixed with this imagery that he was conjuring up.
 
 (18:04 - 18:19)
 And I just think it's fabulous to watch that. And I think the other thing that's fabulous really is that this is a never-ending journey. If you're interested, there's always something else to explore, something else to consider.
 
 (18:19 - 18:28)
 And that gives me great joy, knowing that, like I said, you'll never cross the finish line. You'll never be done. You'll never be good enough.
 
 (18:28 - 18:34)
 You'll never be done learning. You're always going to be continuing to look for something else. And that's exciting to me.
 
 (18:35 - 18:50)
 Yeah, that is really exciting because it's like you're constantly exploring because you're never satisfied with what you did before. Exactly. You can turn and say, oh, I wish I could paint like so-and-so.
 
 (18:50 - 19:00)
 But as soon as you reach that level, you're looking down the line and saying, oh, I wish I could do that. So it is. It's a never-ending experience.
 
 (19:00 - 19:24)
 And it's a great joy to be on that trip. You are credited with doing some workshops with some top-selling artists in Canada. Can you elaborate on this for our audience? How did this come about and what do you explore? Yes, I have worked with a number of artists in their workshops.
 
 (19:24 - 19:40)
 Brian Buckrell, David Langevin, Peter John Reid and Tim Packard, just to name a few. I still have many more on my to-do list. I think this was really born out of the lockdown and our ability to use Zoom.
 
 (19:40 - 19:55)
 I can take a live workshop from an artist that lives across the country and I can meet people from all over Canada and all over the world at these workshops. It's quite incredible. I can show up in my pajamas, which is wonderful.
 
 (19:56 - 20:18)
 There are many in-person workshops and the community of the artists is what's missing in the Zoom. But for someone like me, the creative process of learning through a Zoom workshop and their recordings is substantial. I can revisit a segment.
 
 (20:18 - 20:25)
 I can rewind. I can slow it down. The artists offer up everything.
 
 (20:26 - 20:38)
 They offer up colour mixing and perspective and value studies. Anything you want to learn is out there. They share their techniques and their ideology and that just opens up your mind to new possibilities.
 
 (20:42 - 21:04)
 We'll be right back. In this point in time, there's just so much access to information and it's easy access. YouTube is another great way to accelerate your learning and it can really keep you motivated.
 
 (21:04 - 21:24)
 Anytime you're feeling stuck, and we do get stuck, it's just so easy to go out and look at something else and someone else doing art. It can break you free of whatever's holding you back. You'll just continue to move forward.
 
 (21:24 - 22:03)
 You'll continue to be inspired and continue to be motivated to do more. On your Instagram, you have taken up the challenge of 100 plein air paintings and 120-minute paintings. What inspired you to take up this challenge? Have you completed it and has it led to other discoveries in your creativity? I believe these came about as a dare, one I couldn't walk away from.
 
 (22:03 - 22:13)
 I've lost track of the plein air paintings. This is now a habit for me. I enjoy it, but I did complete the 20-minute challenge.
 
 (22:13 - 22:28)
 In fact, I was just looking at some of that artwork today and I think I'll repeat it. 20 minutes goes by so quickly. You just have to try to get the essence of the scene down and not every fence post will make it into your painting.
 
 (22:29 - 22:40)
 It requires you to focus on big simplified shapes and their value differences. There's no time to adjust a mistake. You can't say, let me remix that color.
 
 (22:40 - 22:49)
 You've only got 20 minutes. You have to forge ahead. You have to take that inappropriate color and put it on that painting.
 
 (22:49 - 23:00)
 Then you have to mix new colors that are going to work with that inappropriate color. It's a great learning experience, actually. It's something that I would definitely do again.
 
 (23:05 - 23:29)
 You don't run into that problem of overworking a piece. No, that's one problem you won't have. Some of my artist friends that also took up the challenge would set their timer for 15 minutes so that they could spend the last five minutes fiddling and correcting.
 
 (23:29 - 23:55)
 It's interesting to see the mentality that comes to the challenge. It's a great challenge and I would encourage people to try it. It does sound like a great tool to help artists work faster and be more spontaneous and not second-guess yourself.
 
 (23:55 - 24:01)
 Yeah, and not to overthink things. That's part of the issue. We do overthink things.
 
 (24:04 - 24:31)
 You've got to be as quick as you can to get the basic elements of what it is you want to get down on a painting. It's funny because I used color mixes and combinations that I would not have used if it was a planned painting. There's lots of good advantages to doing something like this.
 
 (24:31 - 24:44)
 It certainly will break you out of a rut if you're stuck. You have 20 minutes, but the clock is set and you've just got to go for it. There's a lot of energy in those paintings.
 
 (24:44 - 24:57)
 Some don't work and then some actually work quite well in 20 minutes. You're wondering why you're spending days and weeks. When you do get something that's a little fresh with a 20-minute painting.
 
 (24:59 - 25:30)
 You have also completed a number of monochromatic pieces. How and when do these studies happen in your studio? Are they after a number of your colored landscapes or before? Is there method in your creativity when you paint certain subjects or is it determined by experience? I really enjoy the chromatic pieces. They're usually done before a color study.
 
 (25:30 - 25:48)
 The ones you probably saw were part of the 20-minute challenge. Working in just a single color allows you to focus on design and perspective and value. You can make sure all that's working before you try to go into color.
 
 (25:48 - 26:08)
 It builds your confidence knowing that the composition works and will stand on its own. That allows you to be bolder with your color and to take more risks. Depending on what color you choose to do your monochromatic in can certainly change the entire mood of the scene.
 
 (26:09 - 26:24)
 That's something that I'm interested in pursuing again. To actually do studio work but monochromatically. I think they stand as an artwork all on their own.
 
 (26:24 - 26:43)
 I'm interested to see where that may go. I think at that point it's almost more the emotion or the feeling that you're trying to convey may come across easier. Or maybe more defined with working in a single color.
 
 (26:44 - 26:56)
 I like looking at black and white comic books more than color sometimes. The color is overwhelming. You just can't ignore it.
 
 (26:57 - 27:07)
 I find it can be too much. It's just overpowering. Sometimes you want that simplicity.
 
 (27:08 - 27:31)
 As I said, you can alter the mood of the painting depending on what color you're going to do the monochromatic in. It also makes for a quieter painting. You're right, I think that leaves a lot more up to the interpretation of the viewer themselves as to what they're experiencing when they view it.
 
 (27:31 - 27:47)
 I guess a lot of people value color in different ways. Yes. I think we're in a time right now where a lot of us are pushing for that color.
 
 (27:51 - 28:04)
 We're trying to be more intense. We're very much going beyond what we might be seeing in our interpretation. Some of it's lovely, but some of it's quite loud.
 
 (28:05 - 28:29)
 I sometimes walk into a gallery and I enjoy the piece, but I don't know if I could live with it every day. It may just be too much for me. It's an interesting concept, this one color versus many loud, bold colors.
 
 (28:30 - 28:38)
 We'll have to see where that goes. I guess it's up to each person to decide what works for them. Exactly.
 
 (28:40 - 29:09)
 What have you learned has been a benefit from being involved in the gallery circuit? You have been involved with a few southwestern Ontario galleries. What has been the most unexpected skill you learned from them? I think what I learned was that I prefer to create rather than market. I have worked with a number of galleries and it's been a great experience.
 
 (29:10 - 29:26)
 I have a whole new level of respect for curating an art exhibit. It's not as simple as just hanging that art up on the wall. It's an intricate game of making sure that each piece is represented in its best light, and that the pieces are all speaking to one another.
 
 (29:27 - 29:40)
 Everybody that I've worked with has been extremely knowledgeable and very willing to help. Not just to help the artists, but also the collectors. Sometimes collectors need help or advice or they have questions.
 
 (29:41 - 29:54)
 The gallery staff is literally the bridge between us. I think they're a very important part of our community and I really applaud their work. You have a natural talent with color theory.
 
 (29:54 - 30:17)
 There are many of your artworks that are well balanced and stunning in depth of color, complexity and layers. Was this something you gained from exploration of different mediums? Or does it go back to your days in real estate? Wow, that's an interesting question. I had to put the real estate in there somewhere just a little bit.
 
 (30:19 - 30:31)
 I do believe that all our past experiences move forward with us. In real estate, you really had to be flexible. You had to be able to think outside the box.
 
 (30:31 - 30:41)
 You had to be inventive. I did a lot of door knocking and I made a lot of phone calls. I needed to be really persistent to get to my end goal.
 
 (30:42 - 30:53)
 I think that persistence benefits me in my art practice. I work mostly in acrylics. There's a lot of ways to use that medium to get where you're going.
 
 (30:54 - 31:06)
 It's not always a straight line and sometimes that road less traveled causes unexpected results. I can work transparently. I can use glazes.
 
 (31:07 - 31:18)
 I can work opaquely. I can start on a white canvas or I can put down an underpainting of a chosen color. That's going to influence what I put on top of that and how that reads.
 
 (31:19 - 31:32)
 I can layer upon layer upon layer. I can embrace the quick drying nature or I can really slow it down. There are so many different additives that I can use with this medium.
 
 (31:33 - 31:38)
 I can put gels in with it. I can use gloss medium. I can use molding paste.
 
 (31:39 - 31:56)
 They will all change the texture or the sheen and by doing so, the outcome of the piece. It's really simply a medium that invites you to come and play. I had to put the real estate in there somewhere just a little bit.
 
 (32:00 - 32:15)
 I have been told by people that they recognize my interpretations and my colored schemes. I didn't know it, but I happen to be a violet lover. Whether that be a blue violet or a red violet.
 
 (32:17 - 32:30)
 Once a very good artist friend told me that I have the best hint of cartoon in my paintings. I'll accept that. We are forever evolving and changing.
 
 (32:31 - 32:40)
 This is where I am today in my art journey. Who knows where I'll be tomorrow or next year. That's so true.
 
 (32:40 - 33:48)
 acrylic does that, doesn't it? If you had to define your style as to what makes it distinctly yours, how would you describe it? Would it be line, form, color, texture or your intuitive interpretation of your subjects or something else? After your experience with the plein air challenge and your 120 minute paintings, what would you say is your favorite painting practice? Do you like being outside the studio or the defined timeline best? And what did you learn from these distinct painting techniques? Both practices are great and they bring different things to the table and to your mind and to your reaction and to your canvas. I don't think you can match the plein air experience though. For the artist, they're affected by the warmth of the sun, the song of a bird, or the gentle breeze across their palate.
 
 (33:49 - 34:13)
 They're also affected by the rain, the heat, the bugs, and the rabbit hole that you didn't see but just stepped into. When you're standing out there in nature, in all her grandeur, you're not only seeing but all of your senses are working. You're feeling the place where your feet are planted.
 
 (34:15 - 34:27)
 The painting will reflect those emotions. There's an energy in the plein air work that I don't think you can replicate in the studio. In the studio, you get caught up in time.
 
 (34:28 - 34:43)
 Time to think, time to ponder, time to try and perfect. Plein air is a response to all that surrounds us. It doesn't always work, but when it does, I think that's the sweet spot.
 
 (34:44 - 34:59)
 The painting outside is definitely challenging but definitely can be rewarding too. It's a full contact sport. Yeah, you're totally enveloped in that one.
 
 (35:01 - 35:13)
 You are, and I very much enjoy being outdoors. I just love it. But yes, you're not in control of anything.
 
 (35:13 - 35:29)
 Not the sun, not the weather, not the insects, but I do enjoy it. We've actually reached the end of our questions for your interview. If you have anything you would like to add, now is the time.
 
 (35:30 - 35:41)
 I'd just like to thank you and your listeners for the opportunity of coming and speak to you today. I hope you'll come back and visit another time. Yeah, we'll chat again in the future and see where you're at.
 
 (35:41 - 35:47)
 That would be lovely. Thanks, Andrea. You too, bye.
 
 (35:48 - 36:02)
 Enjoy your day. Bye-bye. Join me next time as I go down another rabbit hole with another creative professional on their insights, their inspirations, and their ingenuity.