Featured Artist Ezshwan Winding

Enjoy the fascinating abstract portfolio of encaustic artist Ezshwan Winding. View more of her art by visiting her website.

 

 

As a little girl I dreamed of being an artist. I remember lying on the floor while my mother was ironing, and asking her what she wanted me to draw. She said, “It doesn’t matter.” I replied, “Oh yes it does! I’ll draw anything you want.”

 

 

I assumed all one had to do was look at something—a face, a landscape, a still life—to be able to draw what they saw. It took me until I was in my twenties to realize that not everyone sees. Most people just look at things.

 

 

I had to do a lot of convincing to pacify my parents so that I could major in art at the University of Illinois. (One of many schools that I attended.) Their concern was that I would leave school without a career that would support me, and art wouldn’t. That was understandable, and something I had to learn. My mother insisted that I take a typing class, so I could at least become a secretary after school. I took the typing class, but was never very proficient. My father said, “What good is art? You can’t eat it or wear it.” Perhaps it was good that I was so naïve that I didn’t listen.

 

 

After leaving art school, I started work in the art department of a publishing company in Chicago. Later, I joined another publisher in Lake Bluff, Illinois. I started at the bottom, drawing lines around maps and drawing symbols of hay stacks, cows, etc. with a crow quill pen. The art director of the second company approved my drawing ability to create illustrations. I eventually became picture editor.

 

 

I was fired when I became pregnant with my first daughter. In those days, pregnant women or mothers were not welcome in offices or art departments. After my children were grown, I co-owned and was director of two art galleries. One was in Scottsdale, Arizona and the other in Ashland, Oregon. This put me into the position of meeting and working with many other artists.

 

 

Twenty years ago, I moved to San Miguel de Allende, Mexico and was embraced by the active art community. I had many solo and group shows. The vibrant colors, energy and history influenced my palette and artistic direction.

 

 

Figurative art was my focus for the major part of my career as a working artist. Then the magic of creating abstract art took over. The excitement of moving form, color and shapes captivated my imagination and pushed me further into intuitive expression.

 

 

Painting with wax, resin and pigment stimulates my experimentation, texture and layering. The possibilities seem endless. I began teaching encaustic painting 19 years ago. This has encouraged me to explore and master more advanced techniques. I chose to share my years of experience with my students using conceptually driven abstraction and the love of the materials. I concentrate on content, composition, and instinct in art making, just as I do in my own work.

 

Ezshwan Winding invites you to follow on Facebook and Vawaa.

 

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