Collection: Wendy Meeres

Artist Statement:

I have been a painter for over three decades – my medium changes depending on the series of work. I started in watercolours but also worked in acrylics, pastels and ink. My work is inspired by the world around me, both locally and through the many travels I’ve been fortunate to embark on.

I’ve always been interested in history and architecture. I feel that Alberta has a short history
compared to many places in the world. I've always loved historic buildings, architecture and the details like windows, doors, sculptural components. Wherever I travel, I like to capture the world in photographs and a few of these many, many photographs make their way into my paintings. I’ve been painting scenes of streets and architecture from Mexico, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Italy, Prague and Portugal. When travel was restricted, I started looking closer to home for inspiration. I also enjoy nature and paint local scenery, animals and florals.

I have also enjoyed working in the flame and making glass beads for almost 20 years. Colour and reactions in the flame inspire this work. It can be about colour and pattern or have a bit of whimsy in the fun little miniatures of the world around me or in my imagination.

I hope to continue to teach locally, online and in other communities. To travel the world
teaching and creating art is my dream job.

Artist Bio:

Wendy Meeres was born and raised in Red Deer, Alberta. Art has always played an important role in her life. Her work has focused on pottery, painting and lampwork glass beads. In 2011 she made a choice to move away from the pottery and focus on the painting and glass bead making. Working in water- based media, she combines printmaking and image transfers that use her own photographs. Her current work is often inspired by her travels and may be mixed media or watercolour. Her glass beads are colourful bits of glass that are then made into jewelry or sold as single beads.

Paintings
Wendy paints in a variety of mediums. She started painting in watercolours and over the years has moved in mixed media and acrylics. She takes her watercolours on her travels and loves to paint street scenes, architecture and landscapes. She is also an avid photographer and her photographs inspire the work at home. The photographs may be printed on rice or tissue paper and collaged into her mixed media pieces. Her acrylics range from travel and nature inspirations. Recently she has been primarily painting in watercolours of her travels, local streets, florals, birds and landscapes. She teaches watercolours, currently online.

Lampworking
Lampworking, or flameworking is the process of making glass beads in a oxygen propane fueled torch. Steel mandrels are coated in a slip to prevent the glass from sticking to the mandrel. The mandrel is heated in the flame and the tips of rods of glass are also heated. Once the glass has melted it can be wrapped around the mandrel, heated further while being turned. The result should be a round bead. Other colours can then be added using different techniques to create a design on the bead. There are many different techniques that can lead to a variety of results: hollow beads, larger pieces made without the mandrel, fine designs made with stringer (thin rods), dots and so much more.

Wendy's Personal Website