NMWS ABQ Monthly Meeting
February 5, 2022 10 a.m.
Meeting Place
Heights Community Church, Fellowship Hall,
6935 Comanche NE, Albuquerque
(Louisiana & Comanche NE)
Exec. Comm. Members - please arrive 10-15 minutes early to help set up chairs in the meeting room.
Exec Committee meeting starts at 9:00 AM
*****
Social time, Business Meeting, followed by
the Guest Presentation, starts at 10:00 AM
Please wear a mask at all times while indoors.
Presentation by:
Wendy Wilkerson
Since childhood, art has been at the center of my life. In 1964 at the age of nine, I received my first public recognition as an artist when in a district competition I was presented with the Scholastic Arts Award for Sculpture, Best in Show, for a copper wire sculpture. The public library became my art instructor as I studied and practiced sculpting techniques. In 1969, my interest in sculpture encouraged me to work with enameling and ceramics.
1970 brought my first opportunity to show as an adult when a male bust was juried as part of the May Show at the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland (OH). That same year, my focus began to shift from sculpting to drawing and painting using traditional oils, acrylics and soft pastels. In 1973, my life long commitment was sealed when I sold my first painting, TOULOUSE LIVES, an acrylic on board. The next year I began a parallel career in commercial art that would both financially support my artwork and allow me to refine a multitude of skills that are used in my fine art. Traveling throughout the U.S., my commercial art career would range from copyrighted drawings and designs, catalogues, ads and instructional materials, to the billboards of Ocean City (MD).
In 1982, I returned to Cleveland and took employment with Downing Displays. I was now a Master Craftsman Sign Painter and the first woman to join the sign painters union. I painted trade show displays for Goodyear, Rockwell International, Morse Controls, RubberQueen, and other major corporations.
I finally had the courage to open my own company in 1988. I became President and Owner of Artisign Graphics, Inc., Cleveland (OH), a design studio for printing, advertising, logo design, and graphics. After years of teaching myself hand and board work, it was time to master computer graphics and design.
My desires to interact with other fine artists lead me to join Women Artist Group Effort (WAGE) in Wooster (OH). Founded by Susan Shie, this association of woman artists is dedicated to creating art and promoting women artist. As an active member of WAGE, I continued to paint and acted as rotating curator of monthly shows at The College of Wooster and the Wayne Center for the Arts.
My continued vision to balance my commercial art with my fine art lead me to open Cicuye Studios in Alexandria (VA) in 1999. The studio provides a work center for me to continue my study of art and produce paintings in acrylic, pastel and gouache. Since 1997, the various techniques and images of the years have melded into the gouache and rice paper images that characterize my work.
Today, living in New Mexico, my paintings push me further in exploring new methods of working in gouache. The brilliant sun and beautiful weather inspire me to work beyond traditional methods to reach a level of creativity I thoroughly enjoy.
