Featured Artist Leah Wiedemer

Oil painter Leah Wiedemer presents a captivating portfolio that portrays nostalgic scenes of childhood. Visit her website to view more of her work.

 

 

During my career as an artist I’ve worked in a wide variety of mediums as a muralist, book illustrator, art teacher, sidewalk artist, and finally an oil painter. As an oil painter, I have explored landscape painting, gardens, city scenes, and most recently figures.

 

 

My son and his family, which includes my five-year old granddaughter, moved out of the country. I had to find a way to cope with the separation.

 

 

She, like most children, has a wonderful imagination. It’s so vivid in fact that if she imagines something, to her it is real. Thinking about this fantastic super power is the inspiration for my new body of work.

 

 

I choose a reference of her and then attempt to tap into her imagination, creating a scene that could exist in her mind as she plays. While my granddaughter is still my main model, I have since branched out to use other children as models for my paintings.

 

 

Thinking like a child has exercised my own imagination, making it stronger and more elastic. I believe that discovering the joy of visual storytelling is the silver lining in this dark cloud of separation.

 

 

My technique is fairly traditional. I prefer to paint on panels rather than stretched canvas because I like the smoother surface and rigidity of the panel. I start with a monochromatic value sketch, which gives me a clear map of the dark and light pattern. For this step, I use water mixable oil paints so that I can wipe out areas without using solvents.

 

 

When I’m happy with that, I usually switch to traditional oils and begin working on the figure first. For me it’s the most difficult and time consuming. While I work on the scene or environment where I have placed the figure, I pay attention to all the edges, shapes, and colors making sure there is ample variety to hold the viewer’s interest.

 

 

My hope is that when you look at my paintings you will discover a story of your own. Maybe it will stir a long ago memory, or childhood dream of when life still had an innocence and magic happened on a daily basis.

 

Leah Wiedemer invites you to follow her on Instagram and  Facebook.

 

 

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