Amybeth Galton is new to the art world, and is making a big splash on the scene.  After beginning to paint just four months ago, Amy is having her first display at Ithaca Bakery at the Triphammer Marketplace.  Amy grew up in Genoa, New York and graduated from Cornell University with a degree in animal science.  She has worked at Ithaca Bakery for six years.  Working with acrylic paint and brushes on canvas, Amy creates an abstract world filled with emotion and vibrant color. 

How long have you been an artist and how did you get started?

Four months ago, I moved to a new basement apartment and it needed some color on my  walls.  I had a dream that I was an older woman and I was a painter, which I’ve never had before, kind of laughed about it when I woke up, but then I had the dream again.  So I was like “well, okay.”  So I spent 20 dollars, bought a couple of canvasses and 5 tubes of paint and that was it.

Do you still only have 5 tubes of paint?

No, I have a plethora of paint now

Why did you choose that acrylic?

I didn’t know what to choose, it was kind of a random thing.  I had 100 dollars to play with, and I got the most bang for my buck with acrylic.  I’d like to try oils and watercolors at some point.  But I’m not there yet, I’m having too much fun with acrylics.

What is your creative process like?

I find if I just get up to paint, I get frustrated, I find that I have gotten more crafty in other parts of my life, and from there, I find my self wanting to paint.  Sometimes, I have no image in my head, I just start having fun with the color.  I don’t really have a process, I don’t think. A lot of it just depends on my mood.

A lot of times when I sit down to paint, I have a comedy playing in the background, or Aretha franklin, playing music or something like, you know, happy, and I just have a lot of fun.  Something with a lot of beat or movement, golden girls, Frasier, you know something happy. I find that my paintings reflect a lot of emotion, which I guess is normal for people, which I didn’t realize, it’s a lot of emotion.  It’s almost like therapy for me, it’s really a lot of fun.  Because it is ever changing.

It’s just really interesting, I’m learning a lot about my self through it.  I love waking up in the middle of the night thinking about color, which I’ve never had.  I find myself looking around, noticing textures, which I never did before, I’m always feeling things now

I don’t know if this is something I’m gonna keep doing, or if it is something I’m going to stop in a month, but right now, it’s something that I really enjoy.   If I sell a couple of pieces… that’d be fun too!

Does working at Ithaca Bakery influence your art?

I think one of the reasons I am at the bakery is because I love people, I love watching interactions, picking up body language, and I love challenge.

[Working here has] really allowed me to build human relationships, I really enjoy people, I enjoy high fives in the morning, motivating people. I look forward to working with the IB staff each morning. I highly value my co-workers both on a professional & personal level! The staff & customers bring me a lot of happiness in my daily life and have become part of my family.

I think a lot of it is just allowing myself to be open with people.  I honestly never thought about selling my stuff, or showing it, it was more for myself, just putting stuff on my wall, ya know?

People’s reactions have been so positive and very thoughtful, I get a real kick out of bringing happiness to someone else.

The Brous family are phenomenal, the family has been great for me.  I’m very thankful that the bakery allowed me to try this out, took a chance on me.