Bethanne Hill’s Storytelling Art

Bethanne-Hill-artworkText by Linda Wright / Photography by John O’Hagan

Bethanne Hill isn’t trying to create realistic scenes in her paintings. “It’s like storytelling,” she says, “where embellishing with lots of details makes it interesting.”

For Bethanne Hill, the combination of academics and art in her early education was a life-changing experience. “[I] learned to talk and think about art and keep my eyes open all the time as I moved around the landscape for things that would feed into the work,” she says. Bethanne credits her many art instructors with teaching her not only techniques but also how to be an artist.

Bethanne-Hill

“There was a time,” she says, “when I thought [artists] had to be struck by inspiration. It comes to you, and then in a swoop you make the art.” But, she explained, she has learned that being an artist has a lot more to do with showing up, making marks, writing notes, and paying attention as you move around during the day. “Then you’ve given yourself all the bits and pieces, and the ‘inspiration’ shows up when you show up. That’s how I was taught to work,” Bethanne shares.