Today on Tory Daily we turn the spotlight on one of our own, Larsen McDowell, Assistant Photo Editor, who’s an artist on the side. We chat with the New York-based McDowell — here wearing Tory’s Avery sleeveless tunic — about her style and inspirations.

The art bug bit when…
I have truly always loved making things.

My very first art love… 
I think children’s book illustrations were probably my very first art love. I was far more interested in the pictures than the words. Going to college I thought I might want to pursue a career as a children’s book illustrator.

The artists who inspire me the most… 
I am lucky to be surrounded by women who create really beautiful things. My mom is a ceramic artist and both my grandmother and my great-grandmother were painters so they definitely inspire me. But besides them, there is an endless ever-changing list that includes: Alice Neel, Alex Katz, Basquiat, Milton Avery, Louise Bourgeois, and a million other people. 

I’d best describe my signature style as… 
Colorful, imperfect and personal. 

Favorite subjects to paint and why…
My sister is definitely my most available and patient subject — I like painting things that I know well, people mainly. I think there is something meditative about spending time capturing something or someone you care about at a given moment in time. 

And my preferred medium/tools… 
Oil paints are, by far, my favorite thing to work with. I love everything about them, really, but strangely I love the way they smell. I have also learned to love watercolors, too. I live in a tiny apartment in New York so I definitely appreciate the minimal space you need to work with them — but my favorite thing is that they are easy to travel with. I never go on vacation without my watercolor set and some good Arches paper. 

When I get the artist equivalent of writer’s block…
I wish I could say that I do something terribly productive, like go on a run or read a book, but I usually call a friend, watch bad reality TV, or fall into an Instagram black hole on my iPad. 

A good work of art should always… 
Make you think about it later. 



Follow Larsen McDowell on Instagram.

Read more features from the Beach Bohemia Issue.

More to explore in Culture