Mandy Budan

Mandy Budan grew up in Toronto and has lived in Canada all her life. Originally trained as a graphic designer, that background brings a unique sense of line and balance to her fine art work. She paints out of her home studio in Pickering.  Intrigued by the play of possibilities in taking apart the landscape and putting it back together as abstract form, she creates work that has a more realist feel from a distance and is distinctly abstract up close which I     think I can benefit from observing her techniques. From the rugged beauty of Lake Superior, to the quiet forests that can be found in and around Toronto, to the farms and fields of Kitchener and Stratford, Ontario is full of the kind of subject matter that Mandy delights in. Her use of colour blocked in to these surreal shapes works to create a much more animated landscape. She is able to break up the landscape into segmented lines whilest retaining even enhancing the tonal values and the depth of the view scape.  Inspired by Canadian icons like Tom Thomson and Lauren Harris as well as painters Anne Savage and Prudence Heward, Mandy is constantly striving for that perfect union of shape and colour that will result in a painting that both conveys the feel of a specific Canadian place and stands strong as a non-objective abstract.  Mandy has had several paintings accepted into local shows and recently her painting 'Towards Autumn' won Best of Show in the 10th Annual Pine Ridge Juried Art Show.