I admittedly don’t put enough “home” content on my blog. It is, however, something that I am passionate about: decorating my family’s space in a way that makes it feel warm, personal, and unique. Our little home is entirely vegan– from the pillows on the bed to the paint on the wall to the hand soap in the kitchen– and has been featured in several online and print publications. At this particular point in time, I’ve made the decision not to purchase many new things for the house, as said house has been largely taken over by a toddler and his junky, rainbow-colored, toddler things … But in the past year I did get a new sofa (OBSESSED!!!!! The whole family can fit on it!!!!); a vintage armoire for our bedroom; about 10 new plants; and most recently, a gorgeous and moody painting of a Malibu beach above our bed, done by local Dallas artist Lauren Williams.
I’ve been following (ie- instagram stalking) Lauren for years. The thing that initially drew me to her were her highly-textured, hand-dyed tapestries. They’re undeniably gorgeous, and have gained media attention around the world. So I will admit that I was bummed out when I took a deeper dive into Lauren’s website and discovered that the tapestries were made of a very specific, specially sourced type of wool. Despite the intentionality of Lauren’s partnerships with ranchers who claim to shear the sheep ethically and in idyllic conditions, as a vegan I wouldn’t consider purchasing a tapestry. I was about to close the browser when I decided to take a look at her paintings and prints.
WOW am I glad that I did. She has some truly gorgeous pieces that I just fell in love with. The print that grabbed me the hardest was also the one that held the most significance to me: “Point Dume.” I went to college for 4 years in Malibu, California, and Point Dume is a rocky, gorgeous, very natural beach there where I would frequently go to gather my thoughts and hang out alone. It turns out, it is also where Lauren Williams’ mother resides, and where Lauren goes to creatively recharge. She sought to capture the movement and texture of the beach, while only using two colors (black and white), and it resulted in such a unique effect! The painting manages to feel stormy, yet tranquil, and I love it in my cavernous, dark-toned room.
Coolest of all, and one of the main reasons I wanted to share this with you: Lauren will be donating a portion of proceeds from her painting sales to help fight California wildfires. (As of Nov. 15, there have been at least 6,190 fire incidents in California, burning more than 198,392 acres.) All donations to the LA Fire Department go towards equipment and supplies, training/outreach/youth programs to assist firefighters and first responders.
The original paintings are available, but I went with a giclee canvas print. Each print comes in a variety of sizes and receives textured brush strokes, done by Lauren of course, so that it looks like the original! I’ve attached photos below so you can see the texture of these prints; its really unbelievable.
If you are in the market for a painting, I urge you to check out Lauren Williams’ work. Other favorites of mine are “Self Portrait,” and “Snake Plant.”
