Artist Profile - Diane Buffington

 A Picture is Worth a Thousand Questions

By Heike Hellmann-Brown

Involving the viewer on some emotional level is the ulterior motive of artist Diane Buffington. Her paintings often depict human interaction or interpersonal relationships, and they are designed to tell a story and prompt questions.

Originally from St. Paul, Minn., Buffington grew up in Huntsville, Ala. My father was one of the first employees of NASA, she says. Over the years, Huntsville has grown into a very cosmopolitan little town. With a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Alabama, she moved to Atlanta to work in advertising and later founded the Buffington Rizzo Advertising and Design Agency, which she ran with her husband, Don Rizzo, for 25 years.

Buffington retired in 2007 and decided to focus on her artwork. During my career in advertising, I painted occasionally, she says. Many of my advertising clients were in the interior design industry. Art as a decorative item is a valid thought, so I used to create my own pieces when I needed something to fit in my home. She began incorporating her advertising knowledge into her artwork to hit emotional hot buttons. My art reflects on our times, on what is going on in the world today, she explains. It is conceptual and often based on politics, the news of the day or a certain realization about human nature.

Buffington says she is intrigued by Flemish Renaissance painters, such as Hieronymus Bosch or Pieter Bruegel the Elder, and the heavy use of symbolism in their paintings, but she also notes Edward Hoppers work as an inspiration. Art she personally likes has some abstract and some human nature in it; consequently, her paintings have abstract components combined with figurative elements and the subtle use of symbolism. My subjects have a realistic appearance with surreal aspects. Just like in the advertising business, my scope of artwork relates to people, she says, adding that she uses a blend of photographs and imagination when composing her oil paintings and derives the poses of her figures by observing her immediate environment. Sometimes, it is someones visual expression or my husband sitting in a certain position that can be an inspiration for a figure in my paintings. I always try to convey: What is this person thinking or what is this person doing?

Recently, Buffington set out on a new adventure by opening Wild Hope Art Gallery in Alpharetta, another husband-wife venture. This gallery is a labor of love. Its our goal to bring original art to the suburbs, she says. Currently, the gallery represents 20 artists in various media, from painting to sculpture, glass, pottery, artisan jewelry, and Buffington is also planning activities and events to involve the community.

Diane Buffington sells her work exclusively through Wild Hope Art Gallery, where she also maintains her studio.

DianeBuffingtonFineArt.com