Thanks to a friendly introduction to the world of oil paints at an early age, Charlotte native artist Andrew Leventis knew he was drawn to painting before entering high school. However, it wasn’t until a visit to the Mint Museum in his late teens that he decided he wanted to pursue it as a career. He considers himself lucky that his artist aunt gave him free rein of her oil paint collection during his childhood.
Andrew draws inspiration not only from the fleeting nature of life and passage of time captured by Dutch vanitas painters like Ambrosius Bosschaert and Clara Peeters, but contemporary artists as well like Cindy Write.
He paints daily, approaching it like a “normal” job. On days when a painting proves difficult to finish or add to, he muscles through with a favorite podcast or album, being careful to select something that will bring an air of focus and fun.
That consistent focus still maintains room for creativity, of course.
“I would like to have a set plan, but have never been able to find a nice, tidy way of executing a painting,” Andrew explains. “I feel like my approach to each one is a little different. This means I try to avoid set formulas that may cause the work to look too formulaic or mechanical.”
Support from All Corners
Andrew Leventis credits a quote from comedian and author David Sedaris with the next step in his artistic practice. As Sedaris put it, “You have to write every day… I write on Christmas, I write on my birthday, I write every day on my vacation. I can’t imagine not doing it. If you write every day, and you read, you’ll get better. And if you don’t, you won’t.”
Thanks to support and encouragement from his parents and partner Jim Frakes, Andrew has had a successful and satisfying career. It has taken him across the globe, from London for grad school to an upcoming show in April 2024 in Krakow, Poland. The Krakow show centers around food in art, and Andrew will showcase four of the paintings in his “Fridge Series.” This series, which began during the pandemic, is Andrew’s unique take on the vanitas (still life) style. It captured still life in other parts of the home that were readily available to him during the shutdown. He describes the series as emblematic of that time in his life.
Closer to home, Andrew Leventis can be found teaching Painting at UNC Charlotte. He also showcases his work in the group show, “Forever Transient” at Central Piedmont Community College in the summer. He will be featured in an exhibition called, “Miniature/Monumental” at UNC Charlotte in the fall of 2024.
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@andrewleventistudio
