b. 1987 Fresno, CA
Loren is a contemporary non-objective painter and contemplative, currently living and working in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains of Northern California. He is an ordained gnostic priest and his art is an outpouring of both his initiatic work within the gnostic current, as well as from his own unique form of “feral mysticism”. He is a lifelong free surfer, rock climber, and lover of Haiku, Cosmic Horror, and Mezcal.
His work explores the paradoxical and the arcane; through an on going engagement with what he refers to as “The Ineffable Mystery”. Color, value, texture, and gesture are the language and vehicle by which he uses to transmit “empowered atmospheric mindscapes” from his practice, to the viewer.
“If there were a ‘goal’ to my work, then I’d say it would be an invitation; an invitation into the Numinous; or a domain of ‘experience’ that I call the ‘Primal Silence’. I see my paintings not only as doorways or windows, but also as living embodiments of Gnostic transmission, from my ongoing explorations of the Mind. In our modern era, there is a strong tendency to forget and lose touch with our inherent perfection and deep interconnectedness with the totality of life. I want my work to serve as a catalyst to reconnect people with their Soul. I want to remind them that all of life is not only Sacred but anything but ordinary. My work is there to empower, to inspire, and bring back a much needed equanimity and expansive view of Self/world.”
Though both ontological and epistemological themes inspire the artist, nature and its “wondrous subtleties” are his main influence. “I try to maintain a delicate weave between the biomorphic and the expressionistic” he says. “My paintings are more like “energetic icons” by which the Silence can speak; and the borderlands between: waking, dreaming, and deep sleep become forever blurred…”
Curriculum Vitae
Education
BFA Academy of Art University, Painting, San Francisco CA 2013
Solo Shows
Dark Mountain Deep Valley El Dorado Arts and Culture, Placerville, CA
2022
Shekinah in Exile, Vesuvios, San Francisco, CA 2016
Metanoia, Smith Flat House Placerville, CA 2015
Songs of Saturnalia, Cosmic Cafe Placerville, CA 2013
Group Shows
Kami, Flowers on Main, Placerville, CA 2019
El Dorado Arts Council, Placerville, CA 2017
Upstairs Art Gallery, Placerville, CA 2013
Academy of Art University Senior Show, San Francisco, CA 2012
Publications
Dreamland Review 2015
Professional Experience
Waldorf Instructor, Cedar Springs Placerville, CA 2015-2017
Public Talks
Arts and Culture El Dorado, Placerville, CA July 2022