Meet caren akers | Contemporary Modern Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with caren akers and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi caren, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
My choice in an artistic career was something that changed late in life. I grew up in an artistic family, so I was always surrounded by art. As a child, I went to art fairs, shows and gallery shows with my parents. I learned early on, what I liked and didn’t like in art. I also learned the challenges that are faced following a career path as an artist. With this knowledge, pursuing an art career was not until later in life. I went to college and graduated with a business degree and work as a Human Resource professional. It wasn’t until the stress of corporate work life I realized that I needed a different outlet, so I picked up a paint brush, bought some canvases, and started discovering how freeing, satisfying, and meditative creating a painting can be. That was 20 years ago.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
The most difficult start for me was the first brush stroke on the canvas. I decided early on as an artist that I wanted to focus on abstract art. Living in South Florida, I see palm trees, the ocean, tropical birds on a daily basis and I see many talented artists who choose to paint those topics and paint them quite well and well, if I don’t want to hang those types of paintings in my house, I wasn’t going to paint them either. So, I took the most creative imaginative form that I could.

As with any artist, styles change as the career advances. My paintings started with just paint on canvas creating the movement and the blending of paints. The colors focused on the ocean blue for me very calming colors and colors that represent south Florida. My work then progressed to very lineal work. Lines and boxes and the use of palette knife to create textures, I started working with bolder colors at this point. After a while, this became boring, so I moved on and challenged myself. I started painting abstracted sea life. These were fun pieces, but again after a while they became repetitive and not as fun to paint. It was during this time, that I was starting to be noticed and my work was starting to get published in magazines and books and in galleries. It wasn’t until the pandemic, that I really started to think about all the art shows I went to and ask myself “what do you see selling at the art shows?” That is how my current style of art was born.

I call my current work Sculpted Paintings. I saw a lot of sculptures being sold, so I figured out a way to sculpt on canvas. The medium is placed on the canvas using various tools to create the texture, the design and allowed to dry. So I end up with a white textured canvas. Then the painting starts. Some of these paintings start knowing it is going to be lineal work, some I know are square, abstract florals or sea life still others I just start to paint and see what design comes out as the paint is applied. The paints I use are all acrylic – traditional along with metallic and iridescent paints. The addition of metallic and iridescent paints change the coloring of the painting in different lighting and act as an eye catcher. As you walk past the painting, you may see a color that you didn’t see standing and looking at it straight on.

What I like about my current work, is that it grabs your attention with the colors. Then you want to touch as the texture draws you in to feel.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Ok you got me there. I pretty much stay home and paint. When I do venture out, I travel to art shows. I enjoy going to art festivals even when I am not working, I love seeing what others are doing. I love the everglades and the keys.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My family deserves my Shout Out! Growing up in an artistic family provided me with my love of art – Betty Neubauer, my mother is a renown artist without watching her and going to her events, I would not have realized my potential, my father John, who was always there for me. My daughter Heather, can’t say enough good things about her and my fiance Robert Walker. The list goes on and on

Website: www.caren-akers.com

Instagram: @carenakers