Wendy Artin

"Giuseppe Back" nude watercolor painting of a man sitting on his side

2021

Wendy Artin is an American contemporary artist who works primarily in watercolor and charcoal. Her work is figurative and classical and explores the timeless interaction of light and pigment on surface, with subjects ranging from the human figure to fresh fruits and vegetables, architectures, statues and city walls. "I love paper, and the way pigments are transported along a thin surface of transparent water then dry. Although my paintings are often classical, I studied at the Museum School in Boston and the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris when marks, gesture and atmosphere were of greatest importance. As I travelled more and more, the charcoal and oils gave way to a small watercolor box and brushes. Through the streets of Rome, Paris, Barcelona, Boston, New York, Mexico and Guatemala, I have painted indoors and out, subjects from the eternal to the fleeting. The human form and the humble strawberry are endlessly inspiring." “When I paint with watercolor, I try to make each mark count, to make each stroke of the brush describe what I am looking at, to get the right puddle on the paper and capture life. Sometimes the puddle has a skinny red edge, sometimes a soft burst of pigment, sometimes a lucky watery accident.” Artistic Advisor at the American Academy in Rome, Wendy Artin completed her undergraduate studies with honors in Painting and French Literature at the University of Pennsylvania, then her MFA at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts with Tufts University. Her artwork is in museums and private collections, including the Boston MFA, Kelsey Museum in Michigan, and the Prints and Drawings Collection of the Boston Public Library. Wendy Artin has exhibited in New York, Boston, Rome, Milan and Paris. Her work has been featured in Pratique Des Arts, American Artist, The New York Observer, Vanity Fair, Gourmet, Elle Decoration, Cote Sud, French Vogue, Elle, Carnet, and the Boston Globe, among other publications. She has been featured on BRAVO television's Arts & Minds.