The Curator’s Eye: The Silk Road

Anne Anderson creates large‑scale paintings on heavy silk using beeswax, dyes and acrylic paints. The process is reminiscent of both watercolor and batik, but is far more exacting and labor‑intensive. Imperfect brushstrokes cannot be reworked nor design decisions reconsidered; it has taken Anne years to move beyond a nearly 70 percent failure rate. Her fortitude produces a canvas of luminous color that cannot be matched by other media. 

As unforgiving and intimidating as the technique is, Anne’s images are graceful and accessible. Their scale, color and composition speak to everyone who enters the gallery. Her landscapes are personal and poetic; they evoke a sense of serenity and restfulness. In contrast, her botanicals are often extravagant in scale and painted from a perspective that feels both intimate and foreign. Anne’s silk paintings draw a wide range of viewers into the gallery, which I appreciate. But the craftswoman in me celebrates especially the years required to master the paintings’ technical difficulties.
— K.A.