Simply put, Robena loves to paint. To be a bit more complicated, process is what keeps her captive as an artist. She is intrigued by the objects we take for granted both visually and in the daily scheme of life. The seemingly obvious often catches her eye: a chair pushed back from the table, a teacup on a shelf, the chaos on her kitchen counter. When her eye is caught, the paintbrush is likely to follow. Preferring to let the composition, the palette, and the idea evolve together, Robena starts painting when something intrigues her. At some point, Robena and her painting clash and experience a head-on collision -- almost as if the painting has a better idea of itself than she does. This is, to her, when painting becomes really interesting -- becomes more than painting what is in front of her. She asks "what you are seeing? What does seeing it feel like? What is happening on the flat, two-dimensional canvas itself? It is sometimes about being willing to let go of an idea, sometimes about persisting even when the painting defies reason, and sometimes a balance of both.
urnell, born and raised in Ohio, has been working as a professional
