Iris Lanyon (told by José Paz '12)

     Iris Alicia Vélez Lanyon was born in San Germán, Puerto Rico in 1937. She trained as a Social Science teacher and taught in Puerto Rico and in the Worcester area. In the 1980's, as she lessened her teaching load, she was finally able to enter the world of art and museums. In 1986, Iris satisfied a life-long yearning when she took her first lessons in watercolor from Holden's Jane Neale. She then continued her training under Worcester Art Museum instructors Susan Swinand and Bill Griffith. Iris has also taken workshops with Timmothy Clark - in Worcester, and in Provence, France. In the meantime, Iris became a docent at the Worcester Art Museum and also worked part-time at the Higgins Armory Museum. She resides in "The Willows" of Worcester where she teaches water color to the residents.

     The artist's subject matter is drawn from her own experience, and from photographs taken during her travels throughout Europe, Asia, and her native Puerto Rico. Her current water color style tends toward realism and reflects not only her travel experiences, but mostly, her penchant for vivid colors and fantasy.

     "I work with subjects that either 'speak' to me, or evoke deep feelings about them. I also love to experiment with different color combinations in order to produce different moods. I enjoy working textures into my paintings with dry brush techniques, or by salting, or by using gesso. Lastly, I seem to be an innate story-teller, and as I work on a particular piece, I become part of it, I get involved with the subject matter and develop a story that transports me into the world of the painting. The end results are images which, more often than not, imbue nostalgia, curiosity or plain wonderment in the viewer."

Reprinted by permission of Iris Lanyon © Iris Lanyon

     Inspired by her frequent travels to scenic places around the U.S., Europe and Asia, Iris has created more than 300 paintings, which have been exhibited thematically. Recently, Iris took part in a painting workshop in the Skopelos Island in Greece. There she was able to sell many of her paintings during the art exhibition that took place at the end of the workshop. Currently, her paintings are found in private collections in The U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico, England and Greece.

     Iris Alicia prefers to explore themes that touch the soul, like the musician (left) that she met in a small town in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco; she identifies herself with such works. She also works with themes that create a sense of yearning like the vistas of Santorini, Granada or other places where she would like to visit again.

     Iris enjoys experimenting with combinations of colors that evoke different emotions and she loves to develop textures in her paintings using a variety of techniques like the dry brush, salt, and gesso.

     While Iris works on one of her pieces, she concentrates on the person, or the setting, or the view that she is painting, developing in her mind story (real or imagined) related with the theme, becoming one with her painting in such a way that she feels as if she is inside of it. The result is a work that inflicts nostalgia, curiosity, surprise, or admiration from the person viewing her works.

José Paz is a current sophomore at Holy Cross. He has a self-designed major in architectural studies, with a minor in visual arts studio. Born in Zacapa, Guatemala, Paz has direct ties with his Latino heritage. As a child, he always enjoyed art, particularly painting, and was fascinated when he learned of the possibility of combining art and architecture. Paz's Latino heritage is evident in his work, as he draws upon his Mayan ancestry. The use of bright colors, natural elements, and monuments are also apparent in his works. He seeks to identify with representative images, citing that there is always another layer below the surface image. His goal is to create innovative art that merges art and architecture.