Sarah Heinbaugh is an artist on the threshold of her career. Four years after earning her BFA in studio art at the University of Texas-Austin, she’s ready to move on to new kinds of work.
Her current show, “Strokes of Folks,” focuses on large-scale oil-on-canvas portraits. It can be seen through Aug. 29 at the Commons Gallery, part of the Bridge-Smokebrush complex at 218 W. Colorado Ave., under the bridge.
One of those portraits is of her husband, Jimmy. Like her other portraits, it’s based on a photo and vibrates with energy, color and humor.
“He’s pretty handsome,” she said, laughing affectionately. “He was sitting at his computer and taking a photograph of himself because he’d just gotten back from Argentina. He grew his hair out and he came back with an earring. I think he thought he was looking pretty hot, so he took his picture before he cut his hair off. And I just loved it.”
Heinbaugh’s subjects held the camera in front of their own faces, which gives the paintings feelings of intimacy and immediacy. She finds many of the photos on Facebook, then prints them out and draws freehand on her canvas.
“I don’t know how to describe what it is about a photograph that makes me latch on to it. Probably the color and composition.”
She’s also inspired by the landscape of Colorado. “The colors here are great. I love the orange at Garden of the Gods, with the clear blue sky behind it.”
She has settled on oil painting, but while in college also worked in acrylics, conté crayon, colored pencils, charcoals, silk screens, ceramics and metal.
“I just love oil painting. It’s forgiving and I love the colors. I think it just suits me the best.”
While in college, Heinbaugh often got frustrated with professors and teaching assistants telling students what they shouldn’t do, such as using black or pigments straight out of the tube.
Now, she’s encountering the harsh reality of life after art school, even though she still loves doing her portraits.
“People like to look at them, but they don’t like to buy them. So I’m going to rethink how I do art, which is the sad truth. I’m going to have to focus less on portraits.”
They’ve provoked strong reactions in people, however, including one man who started crying as he looked at her work.
“He was a writer and a very compassionate guy. People feel, ‘I’ve seen that before, or I’ve done that.’”
Heinbaugh’s next show will be in December at the Dogtooth Coffee Co., 505 E. Columbia St. She plans to display smaller pieces, and probably more landscapes.
“I’ve kind of gotten in a rut with my process and I think I need to be more experimental. I need to put on the paint a little thicker.”
In the meantime, she keeps busy as co-founder of Interilife, which sells eco-friendly home finishes such as flooring and paint.
The Commons and Bridge galleries are open 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturdays and noon-3 p.m. Sundays, or call 232-9368 for an appointment.
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