For The Record

“You capture the MOTION of happiness– It’s like seeing all the rhythms of the wind and water and people underscored with the magic of your brush! Fabulous work!”

“Pat Tolle’s thickly painted oils of aerial view landscapes cast in primary hues.”

“Landscapes and Lubberlands,’ … The Gunnar Nordstrom Gallery presents a series of bold lush landscapes from aerial perspectives by NW artist Pat Tolle.”

“Tolle’s ‘Watermarkings,’ a swirling pool of greens, blues and yellows in richly textured oil, shows kids frolicking in a pool. It captures forever the joys of being young on a summer day.”

“Pat Tolle’s bright human studies…refreshing and liberating visions of humans submerged in aquatic settings. Tolle’s use of large brush strokes and refracting light creates scenes of carefree motion.”

“Large pointillist studies of swimmers and water by Pat Tolle…are likewise evidence of the higher level of painterly competence throughout the show.”

“Pat Tolle’s work and artistic achievements are recognized regionally and nationally. Her work has been exhibited in Spokane, Cheney, Bellevue, Everett, Edmonds and Seattle, as well as in Santa Barbara, San Francisco, Honolulu and Kauai. Tolle combines oil painting and collage to portray the directions her life as an artist has taken. Her paintings tell stories through the use of symbolism and suggestion, as well as pictoral imagery, and reflect her experiences as an artist in California, Washington and on the island of Kauai.”

“Mickey Mouse’s 1935 Bathroom’ … It’s funny-It’s pseudo primitive. I can tell the artist has a good deal of sophistication. She’s trying to hide, but I like this painting. It has strength and wit, and the subject is provocative. ‘Waipake #2’ … There’s a lot of humor in this painting and strength, movement and vitality. I like the concept. It’s original and depicts exactly the place it’s about while still being somewhat abstract and full of fantasy.”

“Tolle’s paintings are good examples of a pseudo-naive perspective that is humorous and refreshing….reminiscent of the efforts of pop artists like Jim Dine to create safe, warm environments from the fragments of childhood fantasies….”

“Pat Tolle’s humorous play on fantasies associated with automobiles and women is lively and original. Her painting ‘58 M.B. Fantasies’ depicts a woman dressed in leopard skin on the hood of a roadster, seen through the windshield. Part of the fun in her paintings is the unspecific point of view. The women peer out of the works at the viewer, but just who the viewer is supposed to be in the context of the paintings’ fantasies can’t be determined.”