Hello and welcome to my first artist blog! My name is Beckie Renée and I'm a self-taught professional fine artist, illustrator and avid photographer based in the Southeastern United States. I only work in traditional mediums, which means I don't use digital media to create my art. I use many different mediums though, including pastels, pastel pencils, watercolors, watercolor pencils, inks, acrylics, graphite, etc. My artwork and photographs are reminiscent of my fascination with nature and the subjects found there, including florals, wildlife, seascapes, landscapes, and much more. My art style is wide-ranging, from illustrative to realistic.

From a young age, my love for art was fostered by the many artistic influences in my life, including traditional artists, photographers and musicians. I had an intense interest in performing instrumental music and participating in music competitions in my youth and teenage years, while I continued to fine tune my art practice and techniques. For decades in adulthood, I've managed to balance my passion for creating art and seeking that hard-to-capture photograph with working full-time in the corporate business world.

I've always been passionate about art and creating it, but, in 2013, I experienced a long period of creative paralysis after the sudden, tragic back-to-back losses of loved ones in my immediate family. I found my passion for art burning but I was incapable of expressing myself artistically for a long period of time thereafter. It was through my grieving process, when I reached out to and helped so many others who were similarly situated, that I truly realized just how important the positive impact of art is on the world. It doesn't matter whether you're happy or sad – art is soothing and reassuring. It offers that spark of light in an otherwise dark and somber time and it stimulates the mind and soul in happy times. Maybe it’s the color combinations. Maybe it’s the subject matter. Maybe it's the composition. Maybe it’s simply the ability of each person to look at a piece of art and glean from it what they need in that moment and know that everything will be okay.

Creating art gives me solace, brings me happiness, and reinforces positivity and tranquility. I endeavor to share my art and evoke in others these feelings to help brighten a sometimes chaotic world.

This has been a glimpse inside my art journey – a journey that never ends because I believe there is always room for improvement and always something new to learn. I will end this blog post here and leave you with my daily art mantra: “The World Needs More Positivity and Art”! ~ Beckie Renée

You can also follow @BecksFineArt on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter where I post weekly (sometimes daily) my works in progress and more!