Artist and Storyteller
“Artist: Specializing in Post-Depressionism"
Holly Tappen is an oil painter of figurative and abstract art. She studied Art History at Emory University in Atlanta and Paris. Holly paints in her California Building studio every day. She has studied with David Feinberg, Alexandra Rosenmann, Greg Lipelt, and Suzann Beck. Every Monday night, you will find her researching Leonardo's techniques at The Art Academy in Saint Paul, and on Sundays, she draws the models at Studio 103 Drawing Co-op.
Minneapolis/Saint Paul is her permanent home now, after living in Atlanta, New Orleans, Milwaukee, Paris, New York, and on the road with Renaissance Festivals.
Travel is important to her art; she has gone to such varied places as Chechnya, the Dominican Republic, Bosnia, Mexico, and most of Europe. These areas figure in her paintings and collages, often leading to interesting stories written behind the pictures.
In the arts, she has been an actor, playwright, set designer and painter, costume designer and builder, and fiction writer. She has focused in the last decade on producing high-quality paintings. She has had a number of solo and group shows in Minnesota, a permanent series at the University of Minnesota-Minneapolis Anthropology Department, and a piece on long-term loan displayed at the Hinckley Fire Museum.
"To paint The Dance itself, without painting The Dancer - there is my challenge.”
Artist Resume
Holly Tappen
Studio 504, 2205 California Street NE, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55418
"Specializing in Post-Depressionism"
Solo Shows
- Anthropology Department, University of MN, "Simian Communication Series"
- Ambiente Gallery, juried solo show, Minneapolis, MN
- 3M Upper Gallery, juried solo show, Woodbury, MN
- St John's Hospital Gallery, juried solo show, Maplewood, MN
- Wild Leaf Restaurants, "Koi Series," Crystal, MN
- Wells Fargo Bank, Woodbury, MN
- Coffee News Cafe, "Royal Cards," St. Paul, MN
- Gingko Cafés, 2 locations, MN
Group Shows
- Phipps Center for the Arts, "Portals and Passages," WARM, Hudson, WI
- Hopkins Fine Art Center, Feinberg Critique Group, Hopkins, MN
- Hinckley Fire Museum, "The Four Horsemen," permanent collection
- Larsen Art Gallery, St. Paul, MN
- Robbin Gallery, Member Show, Robbinsdale, MN
- Cornucopia Gallery, St. Paul, MN
- Undercroft Gallery, "Live Bait," St. Paul, MN, (curated by David Feinberg)
- Lanesboro Art Galleries, "Fish 'n Chips Show, Lanesboro, MN
- Saint Paul Art Crawl, MN
- Art-A-Whirl, five years, Minneapolis, MN
Awards
- Grant, Artist Recognition, VSArts, MN
- First Place Winner, two years, Highland Park Winter Festival, MN
- Award of Recognition, University of Minnesota, Department of Anthropology
Education
- WARM (Women's Art Resources of Minnesota), Mentor Program, Rochelle Woldorsky
- Split Rock Art Courses, CCE, Critique Group and Art Retreats, MN, Dr David Feinberg
- The Art Academy, Inc., Saint Paul, MN. Jim Robinson and Chris Franz
- Figure Drawing Co-op. Studio 103, California Building, NE Minneapolis, Florence Hill
- Alexandra Rosenmann, private study, Saint Paul, MN
- Painting classes with Suzann Beck, Greg Lipelt, and Tom Lister, Minneapolis, MN
- Emory University, BA Philosophy, study in Art History, Atlanta and Paris, France
Artist Statement
Holly Tappen
Studio 504, 2205 California Street NE, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55418
"Specializing in Post-Depressionism"
Each painting is a song. I paint The Dance, not so much The Dancer. With oil on canvas, I try to combine the fluidity of music with the silence of paint. With color and line, I open a dialogue with jazz, classical, and rock. I am exploring colors, brushstrokes, and form as a means of emotional expression.
Spending many years in professional theater and traveling with Renaissance Festivals gave me an onstage look at the beauty of light, shadow, and movement. It draws me into the drama of the human form, and it is my pleasure to bring these into the world in pictures.