Hilary Pecis

The Humble is Whole

- Gwynned Vitello

Hilary Pecis makes magic, buoyantly reviving the vivid dream you’d like to revisit. Her scenes become wonderland dioramas that expand, deepen and sprout detail. She paints picture postcards, some bursting with sunshine, others shaded in deeper thought. Possessing a skill with color that is immensely attractive in the most literal sense, she creates the vibrancy or velvet glow each vignette requires. Precise use of pattern and subtle grids coalesce each scene. Pecis sends an invitation to absorb the mood, sit down for a spell, and perhaps, swap one’s own favorite flower or book title. Nothing is ordinary and the humble is whole. If Matisse or Hockney seem to be lingering about, it’s not your imagination.

Gwynned Vitello: You’ve said that you have no memory of a time when you did not consider yourself an artist. I know your brother is also a professional creative, so what do you think forms a person’s comfort in aesthetics, or even the inclination to be a maker?

Hilary Pecis: My parents were not creatives, but they encouraged a lot of imaginary play. They did a lot with their own hands, so we watched them build and make and take care of things all of the time. Although the kids definitely didn’t go without, we were far from spoiled and ended up making a lot of our toys, and later on, our clothes and the things we wanted but couldn’t buy. There was a sense that we had infinite possibilities as long as we could make them. In high school, my brother and my other sibling, and I were involved in the punk scene in Redding, California where we grew up. That culture really fostered a level of creativity and style without the need for traditional consumption.