#newenglandartist

Who Is Rebecca Klementovich

Rebecca uses nostalgia from natural subjects such as, flowers, mountains, colonial buildings and seascapes – but with a sharp, contemporary edge. Houses that are floating away due to climate change are a new direction she is taking. How to create paintings that exhibit humanity along with high keyed colors and neutrals is a reality she plans on working towards. These two contrasting ideas bring out the energy and complexities of our natural modern world. Rebecca’s work moves in between abstract and semi landscapes because of this, there is a fantastic tension. She is a true champion of using unusual color combos in her work. Her figure paintings and drawings allude to complex relationships and dynamics, sometimes haunting, sometimes intimate always in 17 or 18 century style.

Graduating from the Fashion Institute of Technology NYC, she specialized in fashion illustration. Rebecca was a fashion art director for 22 years in the city. Her art career gave her a love of color and a strong design component in her paintings.

Rebecca lived in northern New Hampshire near the Mount Washington area for many years. Now she lives near Portsmouth, NH. The mountains gave her the sentimentality and the lyrical style in her landscapes, along with Fauvism. Foliage and Fauvism has been a huge influence on her work. All of these elements have produced large, modern, and unique fine art paintings. The natural subjects, human connection, and vibrant colors, she finds in her paintings take her to an enduring place of beauty, she hopes to share with the viewer.


The Local New England Art Scene

Buying local art from New England is a great way of helping local artists to sustain and promote the local arts community, contributing to its growth and vitality. Many artist that live in New Hampshire support themselves with being an entrepreneur artist. Vacationers or people who have moved away from the seacoast or the Mount Washington Valley love to buy local landscapes of these places to remind them of how scenic New Hampshire is.

Additionally, buying local art allows you to connect with the local artist and hear their story. New England has a rich artistic history, with its landscapes, traditions, and local narratives often serving as inspiration for artists. In particular, Mount Washington’s breathe taking views are a nostalgic of the what an epic mountain it truly is.

Buying local art supports the local economy. When you purchase artwork from New England artists, you contribute to the financial well-being of the artists themselves, as well as the local galleries, art organizations, and businesses that support and promote their work. This economic support helps to sustain the local arts ecosystem and its positive impact on the community

“Arts and culture are growing contributors to the New Hampshire economy, and that impact is seen locally, with arts/culture in the Seacoast region contributing $70.2 million in spending in 2022, according to a new study”, says the Keene Sentinel paper Jan. 2024.
So, While you are enjoying New England consider being an art collector and bring home a beautiful painting done by a local artist!

PHOTO by @joeklementovich

When I was eight, our school went to a field trip to Strawbery Banke. I fell in love with it then, the gardens, the crowded turn of the century houses. It was such a beautiful escape. Now I live close by and I paint such an amazing part of Portsmouth.Strawbery Banke is the oldest neighborhood in New Hampshire to be settled by Europeans, and the earliest neighborhood remaining in the present-day city of Portsmouth. It features more than 37 restored buildings built between the 17th and 19th centuries in the Colonial, Georgian and Federal style architectures. The darkest colored house is the oldest house in the group. I have a group of historical areas that I am painting, or known as historical paintings. Look out for more!

#historicalpaintings