Laurie Martin-Cohn

For Laurie Martin-Cohn, “home” is both here in Oregon and half a world away.  Her paintings and Silk Arts Scarves capture not only the beauty of our local scenic areas, but also take us to the romantic landscapes of her French and Mediterranean ancestry.  We see dreamy clouds framing sun washed cities and terra cotta roofs above the shadowed angles of old stone buildings.  The magic of her paintbrush pulls these two worlds together for us.

It wasn’t always so.  Laurie spent 23 years as a high school theatre instructor. “When I retired,” she explains, “I was free to explore painting, which became my path to wholeness.”  Immersing herself in European art and history, something new emerged.

To create her Watercolor Art Scarves, she begins with her watercolor paintings and uses "digital magic" to put it on to silk.

The subtle overtones of Laurie’s paintings tell her unique story while inviting us to explore ours.  “Picasso said painting is just another way of keeping a diary,” Laurie tells us.  Her spectacular watercolors share pages from her history that help us understand our own.   She has recently created a series of unique Art Scarves from her original paintings.

Laurie’s work has been juried into numerous shows, including those sponsored by Watercolor Society of Oregon.