By Bonnie Gangelhoff
Sylvia Angeli is known for her large-scale depictions of fruit, most notably pears. Her sensual still-life renderings evoke mood and mystery through the use of color and texture. “I like for the viewer to finish the painting. I don’t want to spell everything out for them,” Angeli explains. The artist, based in Houston, TX, says she always tries to convey various emotions in each of her pieces.
Often Angeli sees human characteristics in the fruit she portrays—apples, peaches, and plums with individual personas. “I did figure paintings before I painted pears, and I found them to be similar in shape. I started putting personality into them. I have done some spoiled rotten pears,” she jokes. “They are my children.”
Nature is her inspiration, along with works by painting virtuosos such as John Singer Sargent. “I love to study the old masters. They are the foundation of my art,” Angeli says. “I absorb as much as I can from them and then give my work a little twist.” She also cites her extensive travels in the United States, Latin America, and Africa as influences on her paintings. She is represented by Soco Gallery, Austin, TX; Sargents Fine Art, Maui, HI; Off the Wall Gallery, Houston, TX; and Maple Avenue Gallery, Evanston, IL.
Featured in “Artists to Watch” November 2006