Receiving the Victor Thomas Jacoby Award from the Humboldt Area Foundation in 2021 was the spark Shawn Gould needed to return to a subject he began to explore decades ago. His piece The Art of Getting Lost is the result of multiple trips to the Punta Gorda Lighthouse on a remote stretch of coastal California wilderness called the Lost Coast. “‘Who travels to an abandoned lighthouse in search of enlightenment?’ An artist who had to get lost to find new inspiration,” he says. “The award grave me the opportunity to create a large exhibition of new work around a single theme, with each painting occupying its specific place within the whole.”
Overlooking Big Blue, acrylic on hardboard, 24 x 30"
Each trip to the lighthouse took Gould away from his usual surroundings and out of his normal routine, planting him firmly in the present. “Hiking down the beach, the beat of my heart fell into sync with the rhythm of my footsteps,” he shares. “In one ear I hear the crashing of the waves and in the other, singing birds. Each breath of clean ocean air cleared my mind and broadened my vision. As I traveled deeper into the wilderness of the Lost Coast, I found myself.
Swell, acrylic on hardboard, 24 x 36"
“Life clings to this untamed stretch of coastline, moving with the ebb and flow of the sea,” Gould continues. “As I spent more time there, witnessing the changes in weather conditions, plant and animal life, and the subtle changes in character and mood over the four seasons I became more familiar with the place. The more I came to know my subject, the more I had to say. The experience has opened new veins of creativity and given me more room in my artwork for personal expression.”
Maroon and Gold, acrylic on hardboard, 12 x 16"
An exhibition titled The Art of Getting Lost - Paintings from the Lost Coast by Shawn Gould will be on view at the Morris Graves Museum of Art in Eureka, California, from March 30 through May 19.—
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