“A born and natural painter, gifted and assured, Ms Leigh Holder celebrates life and the people she loves in these expressive and vibrant paintings, in still life studies, figurative, and landscapes as well, the artist embraces it all, with a determined energy, and enthusiasm...a terrific and admirable approach to life...and art.” - Doug Blagg

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Courtney Leigh Holder a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below. To read the full artist interview, click here.

https://canvasrebel.com/meet-courtney-leigh-holder/

Mostly self-taught, I began oil painting when I was 9-years-old and haven’t stopped. I love placing my original artwork in common spaces, restaurants, boutique hotels, vacation destinations, creative workspaces, homes and other places people love spending their time, connecting to others and looking at things of beauty. I hope my original oil and gouache paints will forge a connection between local, everyday people and places and things of beauty around Texas.  I also love locally collaborating with other Texas creatives to make beautiful paintings. For example, currently my still life oil painting inspired by Lenoir, and its Texas farm-to-market food, is on display inside this Austin foodie favorite restaurant.

Created in honor of the native beauty around Texas, my Texas landscape paintings are for wanderers, adventures and fellow beauty seekers around Texas. I have spent my life wandering to Far West Texas, tubing Texas river, like the Comal and Gaudalupe Rivers, swimming at Barton Springs Pool, and camping at state and national parks, like Big Bend & Garner State Park. These Texas travels inspire my landscape paintings.

For all those whiskey lovers and collectors, my still life painting collection includes a whiskey series, including some of the very best whiskey, like Blantons and Willet Bourbon, that also happens to be in lovely and unique glassware. Also more food still life oil paintings coming soon for the foodies out there...

Fine art is for everyone, and I offer hand-signed, high-quality fine art prints to meet the budget needs of everyday people. My archival prints use high quality materials including pigment based inks and archival papers. Each print is signed on the front. Printed on professional quality fine art acid free paper. Best sellers include my 30 x 40 limited-edition prints, where each print is unique, numbered and hand-signed. Only 100-300 will ever be printed in that size depending on the set run for that print.

A symbolic painter, often nature and things in my paintings symbolize ideas connected to things you can not see. Mystery and nostalgia, and their connection to memory and the human experience are common themes in my work. “Sehnsucht,” is a German word that resonates with me -- it means an intense yearning we feel especially for the unfinished parts of our life. Often when I paint night lights, or blue flowers, these are all symbols for this word “Sehnsucht.”