At age 14 Diane Clement threw some paint on a wall and thought it was fabulous. Over the last four and a half years she's been at it again, but now she throws mostly onto canvas. Her abstract paintings can be described as splatter art or drip paintings or paintthrown art or any other set of nouns portraying the technique of plunging one's hands into paint and tossing it at a target. You can find some of Clement's work in the Skylight Gallery at Art Works Studios & Galleries at 320 Hull St. in Richmond's South Side.

"Everyone who sees her work is wowed by it," says Glenda Kotchish, owner of Art Works. "Diane is one of the more successful artists at the gallery, and I asked her personally to exhibit some of her work here."

The titles of her paintings: "The Day from Hell," "U.S. Confetti (an Epiphany Piece)," "Bleeding Red Heart," or "Big Fish" are aptly named by her children to capture some of the passion Clement puts onto each canvas.

"I begin each painting without a plan, without a theme – nothing," Clement says. She puts a canvas on the ground, and, like Michelangelo sitting in a quarry contemplating the precise chunk of marble for his Pieta, she awaits inspiration to choose the color and first paint throw.

Since 1982 Clement has been selfemployed as a sign writer, graphic designer, art director, and illustrator, but it wasn't until 2003 that she began her fine art career. Clement has no formal art training other than the classes she took in high school. Everything she's learned she taught herself through trial and error.

"I've grown up around art, though," she says. "My mother was an artist, but she was more realistic; she'd paint an apple or a flower the way you'd see it. I'm more abstract. I still paint what I see, but it's the way that I see it."

"Another aspect that makes Diane's paintings so special is the size," explains Kotchish. "When you go to an art exhibit, you usually see paintings that are smaller."

When Clement was starting out, she did smaller paintings due to the cost of canvases. As she became more successful selling more work, her ideas grew larger, as did the size of her paintings. "The Day from Hell" measures 4 feet by 5 feet, while "Big Fish" is an enormous 6 feet 9 inches by 13 feet. For this reason she calls it a "walk-in painting." It overwhelms and draws you into its space.

Throughout her short time as a professional artist, Clement has sold more than 400 paintings. Being as prolific as she is and remaining true to herself have helped grant Clement her success. Every month she sells enough to pay the bills, and she does it according to her own guidelines. She feels very fortunate being able to support herself and her family doing what she loves most. She is not concerned with fame or money, however. She will never paint on commission.

"I paint to paint, not to match sofas," she says. "I'd prefer someone to buy a sofa to match one of my paintings. By this I mean that I want to paint as professional as possible so my work holds up to time, light, cigarette smoke. I see art as an investment, and people like to purchase it as such."