CityView Magazine

24 | October 2015 art A bstract art is art that does not attempt to repre- sent an accurate depiction of visual reality, but instead uses shapes, colors, forms and gestural marks to achieve its effect. Abstract means to separate or withdraw something from something else. Ab- stract art could be based on a subject or may have no source at all in the external world. It can be applied to art that is based on an object, figure or landscape, where forms have been sim- plified or schematized to create an abstracted version of it. Beth Williams Pryor, better known as BW Pryor, owns a beautiful fine art gallery which doubles as her personal studio in downtown Fayetteville. Beth is best known for her over- sized abstract acrylics on canvas, capturing the impasto tech- nique to impart an almost sculptural effect: all with a palette knife. Now Beth uses a regular putty knife, which allows a wider surface for the interplay of color, enabling the final re- sult to be better appreciated by the viewer. Her Mélange series was created almost entirely using a putty knife or an extra large house-painting paintbrush, rather than typical artist brushes. "I like taking an unconventional approach toward creating my art and that extends to the tools I use," said Beth. "I would first apply too little paint, leaving scratch marks on the bare canvas or, worse, on the carefully composed layer of paint beneath. To compensate, I would then apply too much, leaving a thick paste." She now refers to these happenings as "happy accidents." "I love the 3-D effect created by applying paint thickly," she said with a smile. To some, abstract art is what you make of it. You could start with a particular concept and end up with something entirely different. Beth didn't always grow up thinking art would be her career choice. Initially, she chose a more traditional route. She pursued economics and earned her degree from Smith College in Massachusetts. Later, she went on to receive her master's degree in urban and regional planning. Even though Beth was a creative child, pursuing art never seemed like a practical career path. "I was relatively happy with the tradi- BW Pryor brings fine art to downtown BY FATIMA BUTT BE ABSTRACT

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