Laura Green Captures Moments With Her Paintings

Laura Green captures moments in time on canvas — a cuddle, a child jumping in the water, a beloved cat or dog, a child with a turtle in her hands, and now birds she has seen at the estuary. Green studied art in college, but her life took her in another direction working in education and traveling around the U.S., Europe, and South America.

Green has lived in Imperial Beach for about six years with her husband and children. When the pandemic happened, she found time to start painting since her children’s classes were online. For the past three years now, Green has spent many hours working on this new found love — painting portraits, pets, and more recently birds.

Painting the birds has been a family collaborative effort. Green’s husband is an amateur photographer who has enjoyed taking photos of birds at the estuary. Green uses her husband’s photos for her painting while her children, ages five to 12, help her identify the birds. For the past few weeks her bird paintings have been on display and for sale at the Estuary’s Visitor Center. Green has painted well known birds like the Snowy Egret, Ridgeway Rail, Coopers Hawk, and the osprey who lives on a light post near the Visitor’s Center.

Her birds are captured in a variety of backgrounds, in flight, in the water, on branches or on grass. Her style is impressionist. “I don’t like to be photo realistic. I want them to look like a moment has been captured, and the brushstrokes have movement and are still evolving in a way,” she said. “I like to use brighter colors like bright pink.” Green paints with acrylic and her paintings range in price from $100 to $200 based on size.

Green credits her friend Tina with encouraging and helping her promote her art. Green is originally from Orange County. She has an undergraduate degree in Fine Arts from UC Santa Barbara, and recently received a certificate in Fine Arts from a UCSD extension program. She is now working on post BA in Fine Arts from UC Berkeley, which she plans to finish in the fall. Eventually she would like to work on a Master’s in Fine Arts.

“Especially during the pandemic I worked primarily on portraits. I like the process of working on something to preserve a memory,” she explained. Slowly she evolved into paintings pets. Green asks her clients to provide a photo of a special memory that she can preserve with an image on canvas. With Mother’s Day coming up, Green is offering a portrait sale to immortalize a special moment with mom.

Green’s studio is in her garage, where she can focus and has no distractions. “I find it relaxing. I’ve been at home [with the kids] for almost 12 years, and I’m ready to do something I’m interested in,” she explained.

Green’s first love is sculpting, but for now she is focusing on painting, and she is very prolific — producing five to seven paintings a week. Green would like to go back to sculpting in the future and do installations. “Sculpture is a more immersive experience, and right now painting is what I can do,” she said.

Recently she had a booth at the Artisan Market at Peoples Park on Seacoast Avenue to showcase her paintings and get known in the community. She has also been chosen by the IB Arts Bureau and the San Diego County Library Imperial Beach branch, to display a few of her paintings in the library for the upcoming exhibit.

Green can capture a special moment not in an ordinary way, but with amazing loose brushstrokes you can see with the naked eye and beautiful natural light. Green has created a few of her paintings in a variety of purple and white blends which are truly impressive.

Green will have a booth at the next Farmer’s Market on May 20 at Veterans Park.

For more information check out her Instagram page @lauragreenstudio, where you can see more of Green’s art and watch time-lapse videos of her paintings.

Vol. 39, No. 17 - Thursday, April 27, 2023