Celeste
My work begins with walks and observations of the world around me. I photograph water, shadows, rocks, leaves, sidewalk patterns, and building textures. The disintegration and convergence of natural and urban forms inspire me.
I listen to music and birdsong, finding inspiration in the patterns of language. I usually begin each work with markings, splashed, stenciled, scraped, and spattered with masking fluid. My images are not photographs of another world, but part of a constructed surface using pigment and water.
These marks begin my compositions which contain washes that flow into each other and marks using a variety of tools, brushes, feathers, leaves, and my hands. I am a conductor of visual symphonies as I express color and line.
YOU SEE
I SEE
The Art of Egg Dying - April 2025
Celeste Novak FAIA b. 1951 Detroit
I paint in watercolors and live in the woods in Northern Virginia. Painting and drawing since childhood, my first fine arts degree grounded me in the work of abstract expressionism, color theory, Eastern Art, and mysticism. I have a B.A in art from the College of St. Benedict and a BS in Architecture and a Master’s in Architecture from the University of Michigan. I continue my growth as a painter after over 25 years as an architect.
My art is generated from observations of how humans, structure, color, sound, light, and the natural world converge. As a painter, my work become large and influenced my desire to become an architect designing with nature. My architectural career included work with Minuro Yamasaki, SOM New York, SmithGroup and my own firm. My passion for the profession and environmental design has been evident throughout my architectural career, earning the prestigious Fellowship in the American Institute of Architects.
As an adjunct professor I taught design and sustainability at several Michigan universities as well as lecturing and teaching in China. This opportunity allowed me to expand my knowledge of Eastern art, which I had absorbed as a child in the Detroit Institute of Art’s massive Asian collections. My art springs from my experiences as an artist, architect, and author and explorer of the natural world.
I love to sketch outdoors and to capture the lines of motion such as shown in the pitcher sketch below.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/celeste.novak/
Recent Exhibits Honors and Awards
March 2025
Artist of the Month. Manassas, Virginia Exhibition
March 2025
Watercolor Painting: Conversations in the Forest selected as a finalist by Artist Magazine in the Splash26! Best of Watercolor competion to be published in the July 2025 issue.
October 2024
Member and art displayed by Visionary Art Directive, NYC, in the December magazine and online directory.
https://www.visionaryartcollective.com/artist-directory/celestenovak
September 2024
Cersai: Photograph selected for International Exhibition in Bologna, by Ceramics of Italy
