laura sanders is a figurative painter whose paintings of people in oceans, lakes and swimming pools capture the realistic sense of the figure and the water.  she works very closely with her photography and that is where the random or unexpected enters the work.  during a photo session, sometimes something she may have planned as the focus ends up looking different than in her minds eye and that moment leads her into another direction.  she spends hours pouring through photographs to find ones that capture the feeling or idea she had in mind.  photoshop is incorporated to patch together images to form a unique composition.  she is a skilled painter who has the ability to capture light through reflections using color and brushstrokes as her tools.  she received her bachelor of fine arts from the columbus college of art and design in ohio in 1988.  laura recently received several grants and awards including the ohio arts council individual excellence award in 2009 and in 2006.