Under the Big Top - Lorrie Fink

Under the Big Top: Tendrils

Under the Big Top

I paint with oils, using the attitude and expressiveness of natural forms to investigate color and pattern. These paintings celebrate nature’s choreography and reflect the tumultuous times in which we live. The animated patterns are inspired by tendrils harvested from an unruly Passiflora vine that once grew in my garden.

Tendrils are strong. They uphold a plant’s structure–in this case, a vine once laden with fruit, foliage, and branches. Through this series, I explore harmony and turbulence. The painted shapes are chaotic, acrobatic, musical. They suggest tributaries, blood vessels, roots, freeway overpasses. I imagine systems in flux: off-ramps, realignments, uncharted pathways, detours. Pushing ahead, pushing back.

I invite viewers to reflect on ways in which nature offers us a path to navigate chaos, to channel energy and seek harmony, and to celebrate the exuberance and resilience of our natural world. Maybe the Big Top is a circus tent, maybe it’s a firmament, holding our humanity.

Scroll View | See Grid View

Arabesque, Tendril 384.

Oil, graphite on canvas. 60 x 24 in. 2026

Spring Loaded, Tendril 372.

Oil, graphite on Arches paper. 16 x 12 in. 2025

Spinoff, Tendril 331.

Oil, graphite on canvas. 60 x 24 in. 2026

In a Heartbeat, Tendril 382.

Oil, graphite on canvas. 48 x 36 in. 2026

For the Time Being, Tendril 370.

Oil, graphite on Arches oil paper. 30 x 22 in. 2026

The Golden Hour, Tendril 381.

Oil, graphite on Arches oil paper. 16 x 12 in. 2026

Topsy Turvy, Tendril 391.

Oil, graphite on Arches oil paper. 16 x 12 in. 2026

Updraft, Tendril 376.

Oil, graphite on Arches paper. 16 x 12 in. 2025
Private Collection

Roundabout, Tendril 374.

Oil, graphite on Arches paper. 16 x 12 in. 2025

Wild Card, Tendril 375.

Oil, graphite on Arches oil paper. 16 x 12 in. 2025

Galaxy, Tendril 373.

Oil, graphite on Arches paper. 16 x 12 in. 2025
Private Collection, Oakland, CA

Trade Winds, Tendril 357.

Oil, graphite on Arches oil paper. 16 x 12 in. 2025
Private Collection

Polyphony, Tendril 271.

Oil, graphite on Arches oil paper, 16 x 12 in. 2025
Private Collection, Oakland, CA

Gathering Momentum, Tendril 368.

Oil, graphite on Arches oil paper. 30 x 22 in. 2025

Launchpad, Tendril 325.

Oil on panel. 24 x 18 in. 2025

One Fine Day, Tendril 344.

Oil, graphite on panel. 24 x 18 in. 2024

Odyssey, Tendril 328.

Oil on panel. 24 x 18 in. 2025

Energy Storehouse, Tendril 345.

Oil, graphite on panel. 24 x 18 in. 2024

Tempest, Tendril 367.

Oil, graphite on Arches oil paper. 30 x 22 in. 2025

Ringleader, Tendril 362.

Oil on Arches oil paper. 30 x 22 in. 2025

High Wind Advisory, Tendril 343.

Oil on panel. 24 x 18 in. 2024

Finding Our way Back Home, Tendril 360.

Oil, graphite on Arches oil paper. 30 x 22 in. 2023

Roadmap, Tendril 332.

Oil on panel. 24 x 18 in. 2024
Private Collection, Oakland, CA

Time Is Not a Place, Tendril 361.

Oil, graphite on Arches oil paper. 30 x 22 in. 2023