Lanie Frick – Professional Development Grant Winner 2017 Follow Up Report

Lanie Frick grew up on a working ranch in Missouri and you can see that in all of her paintings. Her style and subject matter have evolved throughout her career, but always present is a reverence and respect for nature.

Lanie has been a Juried Member of Best of Missouri Hands for over a decade and was the recipient of the 2017 Professional Development Grant Award. She gave a presentation at this year’s ArtSmart about how receiving the grant helped enable her to get over a creative plateau and open herself up to new horizons.

When I first met Lanie, I was impressed by her depictions of horses and her rodeo artwork. Her artistic skill and her love for animals was evident. During this time, she had received a number of awards and was selected as the Official Artist for several horse and rodeo associations.

A few years had passed then I saw her work in a gallery and could see the evolution in her work. Her subject matter now included more landscapes and her style had evolved too, but was still recognizable.

During her presentation at ArtSmart, Lanie said that, while she was grateful for her success, she felt that something was holding her back from achieving the next level in her career. She began researching different options all geared towards expanding her artwork. What she finally hit upon was a video and online interactive lesson series from a respected painter that began with basic design and composition and progressed from there.

There were a series of assignments, then interactive critiques of her work from her mentor. Lanie shared with us how having this critical eye early on as she began each piece helped open her eyes to new options in the creative process.

Lanie has loved color all of her life and has authored several books on the subject. At the close of her presentation, she shared with us two of her newest paintings. The richness and depth of color in each piece conveys a deep connection with her subjects. Best of Missouri Hands is proud to have had a small role in this artist’s journey.

Reported by Don Crozier