Artist Cindy Conti Talks About Her Exhibit at The Regent

Cindy Conti remembers when she first took to the field of art.

She was a 5-year-old, asked to create a three-dimensional western town, for which her teacher told her parents she had exceptional talent.

"She wanted me to go away to a boarding school, for art, but my parents said, 'No," Conti recalled.

That didn't dampen her passion for art, and for that she has her grandmother — also an artist — to thank.

As Conti put it: "I've been painting all my life."

Brandon Patch met up with Conti, an artist from Apollo Beach, in the community room of The Regent, in the Greater Brandon community of Riverview. The reception for her monthly exhibit was held at HCC at The Regent, March 6, at 6437 Watson Road.

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Brandon Patch: You said this piece, "The Lounge," is your favorite. Tell me about it.

• Conti: It's just so whimsical and it just flows. I love it, and I plan on doing more of this type. Years ago I painted these musical instruments [she said, pointing to a trio of pieces] and they have been displayed nationally and internationally. Restaurants, lounges and bars always want to hang them there. I got so much interest in this type of work whtat I wanted to paint another one, with musicians.

Brandon Patch: It's a painting of two women musicians. Explain it.

• Conti: You never see ladies dressed up like that, playing instruments like that in a lounge, playing the violin and the saxophone in a lounge with a gown on. Very classy. I even put jewelry on them.

Brandon Patch: What's your speciality?

• Conti: I'm very diverse. I do watercolors, I do oils, I do acrylics. I do off-the-wall, in-my-head, and just your typical landscape. That's why the groups I've joined have called me, "artist du juor."

Brandon Patch: How long have you been an artist?

• Conti: I've been painting all my life. My grandmother was an artist. I have a brother and a sister and she would take each one of us separately to visit with her. And when it was my time with her, we would paint.

Brandon Patch: Why do you like being an artist?

• Conti: I just get to release so much, it seems. I'm just so creative to begin with, I want to get it out. It feels good when you get it out.

Brandon Patch: You do it all.

• Conti: All three, oil, watercolors, acrylics. But I've also used house paint. I've used, you name it. One painting I just used a pallette knife, I didn't even use a brush.

Brandon Patch: What's your favorite medium?

• Conti: To tell you the truth, it's oil, but it takes forever to do because it takes forever to dry. It's a very long process because you have to let it dry before you go back to it to add more color. If you don't, you're going to muddy the color.

Brandon Patch: "Chapel Hill" is a piece you painted with acrylics.

• Conti: [Using] acrylics is very hard because it dries quickly. You have to work fast. The good thing about it is if you make a mistake you can go back to it the next day. Watercolors, you can't screw up at anything. If you ever make a wrong move you have to throw the whole thing out.

Brandon Patch: Why is art important?

• Conti: Some people write. Some people cook. Some people sew. And that's how they all create things. So, it's just something you need to get out of your system. It's something that draws you, it draws you to it. You have to do it. You have to express yourself. You have to get it out.

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Interested in having an exhibit of your own? Contact The Regent at 813-571-2492. You can download the submission from from the website.