Carol Roark

About Carol Roark

I love the outdoors. I love light. I love color. When all of the elements come together I can’t do anything but paint! As an artist, I am fascinated by the relationship between light and color and how one affects the other. Yes, you will see reoccurring elements in my work like horses, family and mostly my Mississippi landscape, but it all comes down to the light. After receiving my BFA from Mississippi State, I studied extensively under Sammy Britt and focused on the techniques of Henry Hensche and the colorist movement. Sammy sees light and color unlike anyone I know and I am so thankful for the foundation he gave me. As I have evolved with my art, I see things a little differently than the colorists, but I still apply many of their techniques and incorporate them into my own style. I love painting outdoors “en plein air” and have been painting on location long before the plein air movement became as popular as it is today. There is no substitute for the visual information that our eyes give us first hand and living on our horse farm at the edge of the Mississippi delta I have an unlimited supply of subject matter. When someone views my work, I want them to be drawn into the painting and FEEL it. Whether it is a crisp autumn day or a hot dusty back road, I want to transport the viewer to a time and place that I deemed magical.