Rebecca Zook
Peace. Beauty. Light. Three aspects Rebecca Zook consciously incorporates into her acrylic paintings. Though she portrays a variety of subjects, she relies on a high level of detail and a strong sense of light to tie her work together. Viewers often comment that they feel as if they could step into her paintings; as if the frame were a window to another world. "I'm drawn to Texas' plentiful wild grasses in particular. Watching the wind weave patterns through them and the gentle swaying provide me with a much needed calm. I stand among them and am reminded of the ocean. Great waves roll across the fields. Seed heads catch the sun and glow like breaking spray. This connection with nature is something that's been a part of me since childhood and is a subject that helps me deal with life's challenges." For Rebecca, the beauty of nature and the peace it brings offset the emotional and physical challenges of dealing with multiple chronic illnesses. A rare immune deficiency requires regular antibody infusions derived from plasma donations while secondary autoimmune conditions flare at unpredictable intervals. Because she is forced to limit her physical activities, Rebecca paints mainly from photographs that she has taken of her subject matter. "I have a camera with me always. You never know when the light is going to be just perfect or when you are going to happen upon a unique scene worthy of painting. Sometimes it's difficult for me to get to my intended destination when driving because I keep seeing "paintings" along the way. Many artists travel far and wide to find inspiration for their work, but I find the most compelling scenes are truly in my own back yard, an empty lot just up the street, the dramatic clouds poised over the road toward home or one of my dogs curled up on the sofa sound asleep."
Taking drawing and sculpture classes all through school, Rebecca was fortunate to attend a high school that offered Commercial Art as an elective. This altered her path from fine art to Graphic Design. She received a full academic scholarship to Southern Methodist University in Dallas where she majored in Advertising Art gaining her BFA degree. She minored in fine art–taking photography, painting, printmaking and ceramics courses. Rebecca has been working as a Commercial Artist for the last 25 years most recently for an in-house corporate agency as a Senior Graphic Designer. She turned her attention back to fine art 10- years ago, though still works a full-time day job. Rebecca has worked in many media, but has settled on painting in acrylics to express herself.
Rebecca's acrylic technique often involves painting in many overlapping layers of thin washes of color. She finds this better conducive to capturing the unique qualities of light. She prefers to paint mainly smaller works under 18" x 24" and uses gessoed masonite boards, she prepares herself. Follow her on Facebook to view the in progress photos of many of her paintings. Rebecca lives in Granbury, Texas with her husband, Ed. Competing for her time and attention are her bevy of “children” including: dogs, cats and parrots, as well as an avid love of gardening-concentrating on xeric and/or native plants.
Affiliations: Master Signature Member Artists of Texas, Signature Member NOAPS (National Oil and Acrylic Painters Society), American Plains Artists and LGAA (Lake Granbury Art Association).