“I look at walls that have weathered and corroded over time, and I see them as works of art. Chipped paint, rust patterns, shredded fabric...these are natures masterpieces,” says abstract painter Lauren Betty. In some of her latest paintings, Betty employs deteriorated painted fabric to make works on canvas of rich but diaphanous beauty.

Her use of old painted drop cloths and veil-like netting create a surprisingly magical effect floating across her canvases as if stirred by a light breeze. Her colors are the colors of nature, only faded, matured. These paintings are both organic and sophisticated.

This evolution in her working practice Lauren attributes to her move to the farm that she and her husband (who works in the film industry) bought outside of Atlanta. The process of building a new farmhouse and studio gave her lots of inspiration--and materials--for her art. “Leaving my very gritty urban studio for the space and light of the countryside, worked on me in ways I hadn’t expected,” says the artist, “not only in my art, but in daily life--I now have a family of goats!”

Lauren Betty studied fine arts at Florida State University, where she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, having chosen metal sculpting as one of her primary art forms. She also excelled in painting, displaying a remarkably colorful, spontaneous, and unique style that reflected her natural impulses.