Laurie Pace - Fine Artist

© Laurie Pace        Graphics One Design 2026 Crossing the County Line Oil on Canvas  SOLD   by Laurie Pace   There are lines everywhere in life. State lines.  County lines.  Traffic lanes.  Rules.  Schedules.  Boundaries.  Sometimes it feels as though everything is telling us where to go and where not to go.   Looking again at my painting Crossing the County Line, I realized those feelings had found their way onto the canvas years ago. The horses live among lines, shapes and divisions, yet they seem to be searching for open space. Maybe we are sometimes doing the same thing. I remember the freedom of our years living at the lake—the woods, the stars, the quiet and simply having room to breathe.  Today I am learning that freedom isn't always about changing where we live. Sometimes it is about finding that open place within ourselves again and trusting God to lead us from there. ...

"Fleeing The Mountain Rains" © Laurie Pace        Graphics One Design 2026 20 x 30 inches Oil on Canvas  SOLD   by Laurie Pace   After several days of much-needed rain here in Texas, I found myself thinking about renewal. Rain changes color. The trees grow greener, the sky becomes clearer, and the landscape seems to come alive again. As an artist, I notice those changes immediately. This morning I came across an older painting I had not seen in years. Looking at the vibrant horses and rich palette knife color reminded me of a season when painting came naturally and joyfully. It also reminded me how much life can change our direction. After years of family responsibilities, loss, and time away from the easel, I find myself asking an important question: What comes next? Perhaps discovery. Perhaps a return to color. Perhaps a new chapter in the studio. Read the full story and reflections on renewal, creativity, and finding yo...

I know it looks like the same painting but it is changing.... © Laurie Pace        Graphics One Design 2026 Mid Day Color in Process Oil on Canvas  SOLD   by Laurie Pace   This week in the studio, I found myself returning to oils and palette knife work as a painting began to “speak” more clearly. I often photograph my work and review it in Adobe Photoshop, flipping the image to gain a fresh perspective—something that reveals what the painting needs next. This particular piece felt too contained in its palette until an unexpected influence shifted things. A deep sky blue—seen just days earlier—made its way into the painting, bringing new movement and energy to the surface. Color continues to guide my work in a powerful way, shaping not just the painting, but the direction it takes. I’ll be sharing the progress as this piece continues to evolve.   Read more on my Studio Blog here:   Elle   • self-interes...

The Textures in Our Lives  In the studio a few weeks ago, I finished a small palette knife painting built with thick, directional strokes of oil paint. The paint rises from the panel. It catches light. It shifts as you move around it.   It is not smooth. It is alive. © Laurie Pace        Graphics One Design 2026 Colors of the Sky Oil on Canvas  SOLD   by Laurie Pace   Yesterday, driving home beneath clearing storm clouds, I was struck again by contrast. The deep blue sky stretched wide and quiet — almost flat in its purity. But the clouds were sculptural mounds of white tinged with gray, layered and dimensional. They looked textured. Yet if we touched them, there would be nothing to hold.  That tension fascinates me. I love texture. Not just in painting — but in life. The softness of rose petals against the jagged rocks surrounding the garden beds. The grit of sand. The strength of mountain stone. The s...

Discovering Meaning in the Layers: © Laurie Pace        Graphics One Design 2026   by Laurie Pace   Palette Knife Painting and the Journey of Faith There is something deeply revealing about working in layers — both in life and on the canvas. When I paint with a palette knife, the first layers are often nothing more than color, movement, and instinct. Thick paint is laid down, scraped back, and pushed forward again. At that stage, nothing is fully formed yet, but everything matters. Those early marks create a foundation for what is to come, even if they are eventually hidden beneath later layers.  There is a word spelled out in the blue section. What is it?  As the painting develops, discoveries happen. Accidental marks emerge, unexpected colors peek through, and shapes begin to suggest themselves. What once seemed unimportant becomes essential. That process mirrors our own lives — the lessons learned, the experiences endur...

Letting Go of Control with a Palette Knife Exercise. This was a small, wild palette knife painting — not my normal way of working, but a fun and freeing adventure. We taped off a page into small sections, about 2 x 3 inches each. Using a palette knife with oil paint, we dragged paint across, through, up, and down the surface. No planning. No fixing. No control. And that was the point. © Laurie Pace        Graphics One Design 2026 Texture Oil Exercise It was surprisingly freeing because the brain simply cannot take over in this kind of exercise. There is no time to think — only to respond. I can’t imagine doing this on a large canvas and feeling as loose as I did working small. This is also a wonderful exercise in color choice. Mine weren’t the best, but for a first attempt, I now understand the importance of pre-thinking color relationships before beginning. What does this teach us in the studio? Not to try to control everything. I have a lot pulsing through my th...

© Laurie Pace        Graphics One Design 2025 True Color Oil on Canvas  SOLD   by Laurie Pace   What is your purpose in life each day? Most mornings I wake up with a list of to do things that cannot be completed.  Question is, are they purposeful things, or just piles of things that even if small, it sucks up 30 min or more.  Philippians 2:1-2  " Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion,   2  then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind." I have to admit the number of emails I trash everyday is out of control.  I really need to take the two hours and unsubscribe to most of them. The other things that sucks up too much time is Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Once you start rolling... you are gone and lo...