Charlotte Slade Decker

Growing up in the 60s, as part of a minority in rural Ohio, Charlotte Slade Decker was raised by a single mother from Mexico. She was profoundly influenced by her love of dance and color, and at an early age she developed an undeniable propensity for the human form and the visual arts.  For as long as she can remember she has danced. Charlotte obtained her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Rhode Island School of Design, where she was named the most promising student painter.  As a young college graduate, she enjoyed a nomadic lifestyle. Returning to her Latina roots, she travelled in South and Central America, while making her living painting murals.  She later married and started a family in the woods of Maine. Eventually, she made her way to the Pacific Northwest, where the awe and wonder of the ever-changing landscape captured her interest.  Raising two children and creating a hand-painted clothing business and boutique, with her artist husband was a strong focus of her attention for many years. Yet, she persevered in dancing and painting at every opportune moment.

Charlotte has always been healthy and very physically active.  In 2008 she began to have certain health challenges which marked a considerable shift in her work.  No longer concentrating on the external, physical world of representational artwork, she began focusing inward, toward a more subjective, intuitive world.  For her, this was a boundless leap, very liberating, integrating her love for both movement and color.  Her current series, informed by her love of Cuban dance, is most strongly known for exploding rich colors and bold fluid movement on the canvases.

Charlotte resides in La Conner, WA, with her husband, and four energetic dogs. Living up to the title of “Most Promising Student Painter,” she has won numerous honors and painting awards.

Artist Statement:

I am an artist in soul, and a dancer in spirit.  I am inspired by color, music, movement, and dance.  I like to think they all have the same considerations just with different vocabularies. I think of composition, color, line, and shapes as sounds conveying mood, rhythms, patterns, texture, and space.

My intention is to embrace the “fiercely feminine” and trust the urge to be my authentic self. I take great joy in the act of creating. In my process I try to stay open, allowing intuitive impulses to guide me. I relish the discoveries I may find along the way. For me, creating is an irrepressible urge and journey into discovery and mystery. it defines who I am.