Valerie Hird

"Fourth Day"  96 x 72 inches  oil on linen  2011

"Third Day"  96 x 72 inches  oil on linen  2011

"Cycles Al-Andalus" 
48 X 72 inches  oil on linen  2004

A Last Supper

72 x 48 inches  oil on linen  2004

"the vermont book of hours - January"  watercolor, asphaltum on BFK paper 11 x 15 inches  2009

I first came across Valerie Hird's work when I started this blog in 2008. Her work has wandered from abstraction to narrative representation and back again, picking up numerous cues from and references to historical artworks along the way. A Vermont native with a deep connection to the region, she has also traveled extensively, especially through the middle east absorbing and processing other artistic traditions. Her love of myth and story has led her to explore themes as different (and yet strangely related) as religion and super-heroes. Throughout it all she maintains her own stylistic sensibilities; subtly simplified forms, a generally warm and inviting palette and an eye for complex geometric compositions.  There's a lot of work to look through at her website, and a tremendous variety as well but it's all worth it.
www.valeriehird.com
And if you happen to be in New York you could go see her work in person at: www.nohrahaimegallery.com