Art Chowder January | February, Issue 25 | Page 25

In the end, I decided I’d rather do a
portrait of a flower and not worry about
whether a part is missing that would make
it unidentifiable. I’m much more interested
in having someone see and experience the
flower the way I did.
Art Chowder: You dropped out of grad
school to attend the seminary. What lead you
to this decision?
 L. Bjorneby: I left grad school due to a
sense of call.  I wasn’t at peace studying trees
and bark beetles in spite of the fact that such
things were a lifelong interest, and still are. 
So I rode Amtrak out to St. Paul, Minnesota
to Luther Seminary, and when I arrived,
I knew I was in the right place.  I was
surrounded by others who had also dropped
their life’s plans and, though occasionally we
asked ourselves “What am I doing here?”
this was what we were called to do. 
I’ve talked to teachers, social workers,
nurses, and doctors as well as artists who
likewise found their way to their work — not
through a logical process — but with a sense
of, I have to do this.  In a way, devoting time
to my art in my retirement feels like a call
too. 
Art Chowder: Your website states you took
a break from painting, but in 2002 “the dam
broke.” Why?
L. Bjorneby: I went through a divorce right
around the time of 9/11, and in 2002 I moved
into a place that (when my daughters were
not around) was very quiet.  I hiked in a
Yakima-area canyon each day and pretty soon
I began filling that quiet time by painting
what I saw in the canyon and the Cascades. 
 I went from being part of a family to, “Okay
I need to cobble a life back together.” My
work was still my work, but at home, I now
had to move into a new place and learn to
be a dad to my daughters without their mom
present. Once I got past that, it was like a
rediscovery.
My art became something that I could
do, that hadn’t gone away. I didn’t have
to rebuild it; I just had to start doing it
again. In the middle of a real struggle, it
was a joy to go get in the zone and do my
painting.
Art Chowder:  So, is hiking still how you
find inspiration/motivation?
L. Bjorneby: Yes, I’m walking and hiking
constantly. Mount Spokane, Antoine Peak,
Tubbs Hill, the Rocks of Sharon, the paths
in Riverfront Park around the falls — I am
so grateful to live in a place like this. 
January | February 2020
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