BIOGRAPHY

Betsie Richardson works in a studio in Garden City, Idaho, where she takes inspiration from the local food growers and surrounding landscapes for her oil paintings. She sells her artwork by appointment at her studio, the Capital City Public Market, fine art fairs, BOSCO (Boise Open Studios), Idaho Made, and by commission. She earned a double-major at the University of Washington in Interdisciplinary Visual Arts and Journalism. Find Betsie's "tastefully naughty" greeting cards at retailers around the country, including the Boise and Meridian Co-ops and Broadway and Market Street Albertsons.

When not painting, you can find Betsie baking with her seven-year-old, running in the foothills, camping and traveling the globe with her family, mountain biking, meditating, dancing badly, laughing loudly, or reading a novel by the wood burning stove in their 1917 home.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I make art to remind people about what's right about the world around us and to reflect the joy and higher consciousness I see in our daily lives.

My oil paintings pay homage to life in the West from land to table. I paint real subjects that delight my spirit, whether that’s a made-from-scratch donut, my then six-year-old's cardboard box fort, or a baby Highland cow leaning into its big-horned mama. Joy exists in each present moment. We must pause our busy brains to see it, and I hope my paintings help you hit pause. I want viewers to feel like you could reach into the canvas and squeeze a lemon or feel the texture of a bison and believe this beauty exists in the world--because it does.

One of my favorite periods in art history was the Dutch Golden Age and all the masters who painted still life using dramatic lighting. I take inspiration from the technical prowess of these painters and introduce modern day subjects in my paintings. My subjects often involve a playful narrative and are occasionally a bit naughty, and I use humorous titles to push the irreverence. In many subjects, I bring attention to the visual exquisiteness of food made by creative chefs and produce grown by farmers with ethical standards. I care about where my food comes from and share that passion in my paintings.

For landscape paintings, I work with professional wildlife photographers and my own photos on outdoor adventures. I’m inspired by striking colors, powerful weather and scenes in nature that tell a story. I seek to capture those moments when nature enraptures us with the power of a fleeting moment, like a gift we earned for being present with the environment.