PARK RAPIDS — Local artist Rick Lundsten will soon leave the small town of Park Rapids and travel to Paris to visit the Louvre, one of the most famous museums in the world. The art on display there is so exclusive that artists cannot apply to exhibit their art there, but must be invited.

What kind of art is Lundsten most looking forward to? His own.

Rick and Kris Lundsten live with their two cats, Tango and Kilo, in a house in Park Rapids that has a Swedish flag flying in the front yard below the American flag. They also have two grown sons, Mark and Scott.

Rick graduated from Nevis High School in 1988 and studied under art teacher Gary Wolff.

“I had the privilege of being part of a really good art program there,” Lundsten said. “He’s a phenomenal art teacher and we were lucky to be surrounded by really talented people. Many of my friends made it to the state championships. I know they continued that success in the years that followed.”

Lundsten then completed an Associate of Arts degree in the advertising arts program at Staples Technical College (now Central Lakes College).

“We did some computer work, but most of it was very hands-on, which I enjoy,” he said.

He worked at NorthStar Orthodontics for several years and is now beginning his eighth year as an educational assistant at Menahga School, where Kris works as the exam coordinator.

“I really enjoyed it,” he said. “It gives me a little more time to focus on art and participate in exhibitions.”

Article by Rick Lundsten

The walls of his basement studio are decorated with ribbons and memorabilia from his successes in regional and national art competitions, including the first magazine in which his work was published – Artistonish, a journal that features artists from around the world.

Lundsten works primarily with watercolor gouache – an opaque form of watercolor painting – and specializes in the realistic depiction of nautical scenes. He often uses regular watercolor paints to depict the transparency of the water.

“It’s very layered,” he said. “With the gouache applications you can make it a little more opaque. That way you get a broad spectrum.”

Gouache was once known as paint for illustrators, he said, and was used for storyboards and magazine ads. “Today it is also used in fine art,” he said, adding that he sometimes uses watercolor pencils to add fine details.

Through Fine Art America, an online registry where artists can list their work for sale, Lundsten’s art came to the attention of PAKS Gallery, which is curating an exhibition called “Modern Art Masters” at the Complex du Louvre in Paris from October 16 to 18. They liked his work and invited him to submit one of his paintings.

Article by Rick Lundsten

“They participate in several shows and festivals throughout the year,” he said. “If I were to attend one of these events, of course the one at the Louvre would have caught my eye the most. So we decided to participate in that.”

“And it wasn’t a show you could apply for,” Kris interjected. “You had to be invited.”

“They try to promote new talent or talent they’ve never seen before at the shows,” Rick said. “It’s something that looks pretty good on the resume if you look at it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

Article by Rick Lundsten

The painting he wanted to submit is titled “Chicago Lighthouse.”

“When the PAKS gallery approached me in January, Gary Wolff was the first person I called,” Lundsten said. “I said, ‘Do you think this is real?’ We basically said, ‘Try it. Let’s see what it looks like.'”

During the review process, he said, they realized this was a real opportunity.

“And you also asked him which of the paintings you chose,” said Kris.

“I had him look at all my work,” Rick said. “I asked him, ‘If we only send one, which one would you choose?’ I let him think about it and he liked this one. A few other people also said it was a good choice, so we went with it.”

He said one reason is that the exhibit appeals to a broader market than just northern Minnesota, and that thousands of art collectors from around the world will visit the show. “The color scheme kind of has a European feel to it,” he added.

Lundsten said he and Kris plan to attend the show in Paris, including a gallery reception, and visit several other locations in Europe.

Article by Rick Lundsten

“Many artists are very talented or gifted, more than I am,” Lundsten said. “But talent comes in different forms, and one of my gifts is that I’m quite persistent. I work on something until it looks the way I want it to.”

“I’ve also been given time and resources and connections with good people. That’s talent, too. In terms of raw talent, I don’t think I’m more talented than many other artists out there. I’ve just been able to cultivate it and develop it in a way that I think is successful.”

Lundsten said his work takes hundreds of hours to create, and he typically starts with photographs and builds an image from there.

Nautical subjects come naturally to him, he says, because there is a lot of water in the area. He has been told he can depict it well, and he likes to paint reflections and stormy waves.

Lundsten says he strives to make his paintings as lifelike as possible and to make the viewer feel like they are there – on a stormy sea, for example, or in a peaceful scene.

“I don’t consider myself an exceptionally gifted artist,” he said. “I think it’s a gift to sit down and create something of a reasonably high quality and feel like you’re doing what you were sent here to do.”

He described it as a gift to have the opportunity to do so and to make his work available to the public so that they can express their appreciation.

“When I paint,” he said, “I paint as if my life depended on it. That’s what people have to do. Draw as if your life depended on it. Make sculptures as if your life depended on it. When you put that much dedication, blood, sweat and tears into it, you’ll see the results.”

To see more of Lundsten’s art, visit https://watercolorsbyrick.com/.