Anna Todaro’s Spirit Paintings
Wanderlust
Anna Todaro, Portland artist, creates acrylic paintings from scratch, without planning or sketching. Her paintings come directly from her imagination and evoke the spirits of characters in her own mythology.
After receiving her BFA from Northern Illinois University, Todaro moved to Portland, Oregon. She says Portland provided a much more relaxed atmosphere for her illustrations, and her repertoire of characters has evolved since she moved to there. In the beginning, she was creating characters from 300BC and now she is doing characters of the future.
Her paintings are done freehand using acrylic on birch, and canvas cradles. Todaro uses lightfast colors such as green and golden yellow to emphasize her characters so she can stay focused. Her paintings have been copied onto prints for ironing patches and wood blocks for home decor. These reproductions are becoming popular in Portland with the abundance of characters Todaro creates. Her inspiration stems from strong female artists such as Jill Bliss, Amy Ruppel, and Trish Grantham to name a few.
2 of cups (Tarot card)
The 2 of Cups,Water,Hearts,Emotions, is a significant marker of a new union. What I noticed as I painted, which I have never noticed before, is that one of the people has a crown of Laurel Leaves (an ancient symbol for great wisdom) and the Other has a crown of Flowers. In my version of the card, I have depicted two halves of one person who is experiencing a unification of Heart and Mind. The entwined snakes representing the cycles of shedding and renewal (on both sides) and a Magnificant Magical Lion (the Eternal Flame) emerging from the whole event.
Graybird
Greybird is quite ancient, dating back to nearly 25,000 BCE. She is sister to Lady of the forest. Greybird is a hunter. On her head are featured the spirit of an ancient boar like triceratops beast which she must have captured one day.
Dreaming Up Something Impossible
Dreaming Up Something Impossible encompasses all times. The Giant Star on her head which also does not have any exclamation marks indicates a deep wealth of secret knowledge directly connected to intention . . . This painting says to me that this little spirit is on a very specific mission, she knows what it is, she knows what she wants, and man, whatever it is she wants, she’s gonna make it happen.
Todaro displays her artwork all over Portland. She has a dedicated booth at the Portland Saturday market downtown. Studio Coeur, a local art studio, provides a corner display for her at Everett Station every first Thursday.
In the past, Todaro’s work has appeared at the Launch Pad Gallery and The Goodfoot exhibits in Portland. 2 of Cups, her newest piece is currently exhibited at the Tarot Show in Los Angeles.
Todaro’s art can also be found on consignment at the Lunar Boy Gallery in Astoria, Oregon and The 100th Monkey Studio in Portland.
Teia Hassey trained horses all her life up to Dressage and Jumping levels. Now she is diving back into her passion of writing. Teia is working on her first memoir and writing for the arts in Chicago, IL. During her time she maintains a blog “Just Breathe” about coping with Fibromyalgia and Vertigo.
I loved learning about this artist . . . thank you Teia!
I loved learning about this artist . . . thank you Teia!