Must Have This One was inspired by a commission from a lady who wanted to purchase a painting that had just sold. I was working on several new images and she came to the studio and picked out another work in progress, saying “I must have this one.”  Then she wanted to change everything about the painting to match her sofa and wall paper. I wondered what happened to the one she just had to have, she was so definite about it and then went into a totally different direction.

~ Renee Steger Simpsom

La Collectionneuse des Boites is the anticipation of a dream. I was going to Paris and all anyone could think of was the shopping. As an artist I was interested in the art and style. The history ... and shopping was not really on my list of things to do. Again, the only people I really knew that had been to Paris could only talk about the shopping.
I have a passion for boxes and will actually buy things that are neat in a box so I can have the box. Snooty Women only save the box, because it makes the purchase more prominent. Oh! My gosh, this is me. I save the boxes because of their shape and would put them on a platter and throw out the perfume (not really).

~ Renee Steger Simpson

Life’s Essentials is about what a Snooty Woman would be caught not being - an avid shopper and then again, that bag shows where you’ve been. The fancier the store, the nicer bag you get. So someday my work will be on a shopping bag.
Life’s Essentials was a commissioned piece, and the woman’s favorite past time is shopping and what better way is there to end a long day shopping than with a glass of wine.

~ Renee Steger Simpson

That Little Black Dress comes from all those women who must have the perfect little dress for every occasion and all my life I heard that you should always have a little black dress and it would work. My mom often took me to a very sophisticated clothing store growing up where my clothes would be bought, taken home, hung in the closet with tags remaining on them behind the jeans and t-shirts that I
purchased at goodwill.

I will never forget the lady who helped me one day and told me I could never wear black. It did not look good on me and truthfully, I think she wanted to get me out of the store because I was such a hippie type and she did not want to wait on me. I also think that part of her had to have come from my sixth grade teacher who absolutely hated me. Looks very much like how I remember her and that is how she always stood.

~ Renee Steger Simpson