Abby Longshore Spotlight
Abby Longshore
Written by Grace Lukens, November 2025
Abby points to a framed painting on the wall, featuring the backs of two figures, side by side on a beach. “In my story, this is a couple, maybe on their 40th wedding anniversary. They’re trying to reconnect.” You might never guess the deeper story behind this simple portrait, but Abby Longshore excels in bringing deep, rich personality to each and every one of her works.
Each aspect of her painting has a meaning, from the couple's clothing to the sandcastles next to them, symbolizing their “wish to rebuild” after 40 years of marriage. She acknowledges that her tendency to create stories about your paintings isn’t a very common one. “People don’t see that typically. But that’s what I like to do!”
Narrative plays a significant role in Abby’s process and her works. Each painting is rooted deeply in the story she creates for it. She finds particular inspiration in small, everyday stories and the lives of typical people.
“I have always liked underdog stories, people who overcome, and people who work hard at things…it inspires me. The thought of struggle and overcoming things.” Quite a few of Abby’s pieces feature simple but heartfelt representations of these struggles: men tending horses, a blacksmith working iron, even lonely water towers looming over vast cornfields.
“I have a lot of respect for people who are doing horrible, hard jobs, just to give us the conveniences we have now. Farmers out there in the heat…jobs with horrible circumstances. My family has been doing those jobs. I have a lot of admiration for people who are willing to do the hard work that so many others don’t, or can’t, or won’t.”
The people in Abby’s works are often symbolic of wider ideas that she finds fascinating: the connections between humans and nature, the gritty nature of rural life, even the simple pleasure of sitting and existing.
One human-nature connection that is particularly dear to Abby is her relationship with horses. “I had horses for a while,” she mentions. “I felt like I kind of had to break up with the dream of having horses to pursue art and family.” Many of her paintings feature horses: dipped down gracefully, twisted wildly, looking piercingly at the reader. The often wild postures encompass all of her emotions when struggling through hard decisions like giving up her horses to pursue her dream of art.
Letting a dream go isn’t easy, but it’s clear that Abby has exchanged one dream for another. “I love art,” she says simply. “I just never thought it could be anything more than a hobby.” Fellow local artist Meredith Martin is someone Abby constantly mentions as someone who believed in her–and her dreams.
It almost seems the essence of dreams are present in her portraits. Many of them are candid-style, featuring people looking off into the distance, what Abby calls “dreaming”. There’s no structure of a typical sit-and-pose portrait. She lets the viewer pick what they believe the people are thinking– a true “make your own story” adventure.Art should always have this sort of freedom, argues Abby. This freedom can create something magical.
She also says that freedom of imagination can be cultivated. “I think it’s important to give people the opportunity to create stories. Escaping and expressing things safely is one of the most crucial things that art can give you. You can be expressive, creative, all these things in a safe medium.” The ability to turn real emotions into physical art, if led the right way, can be transformative.
Though she loves the quiet, rural aspect of Licking County, Abby recognizes the duality of the small community in which she works. “It comes with the challenge of not a lot of business, but there are a lot of artists here. The more you get to network, the more you get to know all of the talent. It’s a great place to work and create art. But it’s always a challenge to find people.”
“Though that might be because I’m a terrible salesperson,” Abby laughs. “I could talk and sell and promote anyone but myself.”
Ultimately, Abby’s biggest wish for the community is simple: “I wish people would come together more. There’s so much great opportunity for art here, and I hope that more people will take advantage of it in the future.”
Abby currently shows her art at Centofanti Gallery in Hebron and is a member of ZAAP (Zanesville Appalachian Art Project). She loves to spend time with her family and create art. Next time you see Abby Longshore, ask her for the story behind one of her works. It’s sure to make you appreciate art, yourself, and the world around you just a bit more.