Artist Spotlight | April Couch
April Couch, a graduate from Baldwin Wallace with a degree in Business Administration and Management, spent 17 years in banking at FirstMerit Bank before deciding to stay home to raise her three children. After her children were all in school, she started working as a substitute teacher. Little did she know, she would soon be considered an artist.
As a self-taught Zentangle-inspired artist and Certified Zentangle Teacher, April creates complicated drawings that are built one line at a time. She combines simple tangles or patterns in an unplanned way that grows and changes in incredible ways. Her pieces, crafted on various mediums like paper, wood, metal, stones, ceramics, or even the beach, are astonishingly detailed, unique, and amazing works of art. She loves that there are no creative limits or boundaries to this art form—anything is possible, one line at a time!
April started seriously pursuing her art in 2012 and transitioned to full-time in 2014. Passionate about the arts and mentoring young people to pursue their artistic dreams, she is dedicated to ensuring her art will support her when she can no longer create. Thus, she continually pushes the limits of what she can do with her art. April has won numerous awards.
Can you tell us a little bit about your artistic journey?
I started drawing again in 2011 after 25 years. As a self-taught artist I create complicated drawings that are built one line at a time. The drawings combine my love of doodling with Zentangle. The patterns are combined in an unplanned way that grow and change in unbelievable and amazing ways. Every piece, whether on paper, wood, gourds, metal, stones, ceramics, or the beach, are unbelievably detailed, unique and amazing works of art.
What do you hope to convey through your art?
What I love the most about this art form is that there are absolutely no creative limits or boundaries and that it is easily accessible to people of all ages. It is also inexpensive to get started. I hope to convey that anything is possible one line at a time!
Can you walk us through your creative process?
When I'm working on a 3D piece, I paint the piece in one of my 6 signature colors 1st. I then sit down with a piece and start drawing. No two pieces ever come out the same because I have no pattern or plan before I start. When the drawing is finished, I apply a sealer. 2D drawings are created on paper and can be either planned (animal or mandala) or unplanned (organic drawing). These images are then scanned into the computer to be used on cards, prints, t shirts, coaster, etc.
What impact do you hope your art has on the Akron community?
I hope that my art shows people that it is never to late to pursue your dreams. I was 43. I hope that people will see that there are many different paths to becoming an artist. I also hope that people will start to see the importance of treating their art as a business, and be encouraged to diversify the use of the images they create.
