Lacey Stinson’s work occupies several thematic arenas: figurative drawing; abstraction; plein-air landscapes; and surreal planetary landscapes.

The abstract worlds of his drawings create dream-like archetypes of psychological experiences that are easily overlooked in ordinary life. The subtleties of these archetypes are discoverable through the eyes of an audience with a sublimely captivated imagination. The drawings are intentionally ambiguous snapshots of Lacey’s identity and are being offered as metaphorical correlates to the visitor’s own deeper self.

Influenced from an early age by the work of Rembrandt, Goya, and Chesley Bonestell, Lacey readily adopted his visionary approach to draftsmanship that is seen even in his earliest surrealist paintings. In contrast, his plein-air landscapes counterbalance his visionary work by the immediacy of painting them on-site, from the changing sights and sounds of real-world settings. These, to him, are still planetary landscapes, with the only non-trivial difference being that Earth is the only planet he can actually stand on to paint from life. The rest of his work, which he in fact prefers, is given life and existence from his fertile scientific mind.

Lacey’s work is intended to inspire irrational wonder. Whether seeing the painterly effects of his outdoor work, or the invented views of other worlds governed by rules of his own making, the unbounded source of wonder in his paintings is hard to pin down. Being unable to pinpoint quite why one is intrigued by Lacey’s paintings reveals something essential about their reason for existing. A painting’s secrets should not be given away too readily. Lacey has the difficult task of creating them, but he sets their rewards free for the benefit of everyone.

Lacey explores these halfway possible worlds by dispensing foremost with presupposition. Visitors to Lacey’s worlds are invited to do the same, hopefully to come away from them with a bit of his deep wonder and appreciation for all that still remains unexplored in the universe. Come share in this exploration, one drawing and painting at a time.

Arete in art, as in life.

Lacey Stinson has devoted a lifetime of study to drawing and painting. Having received Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Fine Art from Louisiana Tech University, he also pursued studies in Engineering, Computer Science, Theater, Maths, and the Physical Sciences at Louisiana Tech in Ruston, the University of Louisiana at Monroe, and Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. The arts and sciences have always contributed to Lacey’s thinking, and have played a major role in shaping his personal art.

 

Read about Rebecca Honeycutt’s life with Lacey in a series of vignettes.