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For the love of art

by Amanda Bedgood

Jill Tauzin Broussard loves art. Really loves art.

Jill Tauzin Broussard loves art. Really loves art. By Amanda Bedgood

Friday, Feb. 1, 2013

It may seem an elementary observation about an artist. But a few minutes with Broussard leave you wondering if perhaps you should take up the brush, so contagious is her passion. A feat after more than 20 years at the canvas.

"My work is very conceptual," Broussard says of her unique approach to abstract. "I don't paint pretty pictures ... I'm painting stories, and for me to share that is an extension of me through my artwork."

It's something magical, Broussard says. It's something that comes from a personal place - that is a reflection of Broussard herself. And it is because of this deeply personal approach that she finds her pieces in many homes, appreciated by clients like Lauren Fruge.

The commissioned piece Broussard created for the landing in Fruge's home is a powerful marriage of color and one she created (like all her commissions) with little guidance and total freedom. Broussard doesn't work any other way.

She spends time in the space taking in the energy and style. And then she creates.

"I love it," Dupre says, looking at the paintings that hang above a reupholstered antique settee of rich pink.

Dupre saw Broussard's work, gave her fabric from the window treatments that hang in the second floor landing of her River Ranch home and let her go to work.

"I just went with it. Who am I to give an artist my opinion on how it looks? That's not my gig," Dupre says with a laugh.

It's definitely Broussard's. Her work is found in homes both large and small. Traditional and contemporary. With no end in sight. Her latest 23 pieces are on display in a new exhibit at Mixology. And they are, more than ever, a reflection of where she is both as an artist and as a person.

"It's my soul's work," Broussard says. "It's my creative response to what I'm learning."

And what she's learning is how powerful art can be as she pursues her next leg of the journey - art therapy.

"It's a dream I've had forever," Broussard says. "It's the time; it's the next step to work at a deeper level, and I couldn't have done it a day before."