Reneé Lawters' creations are pulled out of her head and upon closer inspection look whimsically dark. With a few breathless, stiff, inflexible toy design years at a Mattel Toys and a brief stint in fashion behind her, focus is now on letting all those stifled thoughts out. No more corportate white oppression (sonic youth lift) . “I feel like My ideas are trapped in little bubbles that pop right in front of me and like magic I put them down on watercolor paper. Laughter is a key ingredient in a sucessful creation to me. I really like taking my favorite paintings and exploring the charcters more by building them in 3D out of super fuzzy fabrics with lots of detail..I love detail.” When asking what a particular piece means, each one has a unique story & is a marker on the timeline of her life.

By birth Reneé is a Gemini splitting her time between idlego & eyerus where she is one of 3 partners in an LA boutique design firm. “I dust off my paints & sewing machine in the evening & the computer during the day,” she says. Watercolor is her medium of choice when painting & for 3D work any sort of unique fabrics she can find or knit is always what makes her heart skip a beat. Gontarski’s artwork is sought after by famous hollywood types such as Danny Elfman & art collectors alike. She is a regular artist at the Hive Gallery downtown LA on Spring street & has shown in various locations such as Black Market Gallery in Culver City, 1988 gallery on Melrose, and at Monkey House Toys in Silverlake. Last but not least...she says “I think painting & creating is a way to let the squish out!”

What the future holds for Reneé ... well, She plans to soon DROP the name GONTARSKI all toghether and go by LAWTER she just got hitched In September 2006. She also is looking to have a limited number of prints available in 07 & working on getting a book toghether, so be sure to check back soon for more info & goodies.