Thank you for your interest in Pam Wingard Fine Art! Here you can find more info and photos to help share my story.
For more information about working with me or for press inquiries, please reach out to me at pam@pamwingard.com
MY STORY
After many years of working a 'regular job,' Pam left the corporate world to stay home with her two boys and figure out what was next for her. She sat down at the kitchen table and began drawing and painting again for the first time in years. After returning to school to get a degree in Graphic Design, she illustrated a line of stationery products, created marketing materials for small businesses, and then landed on her true passion – painting.
She experimented with different materials and subjects until she found what she loved the most: places. She is inspired by memories of childhood travel, time spent on the beach, and vacations with her husband and family. She set up her studio in a spare bedroom, and as her new career evolved, she moved her studio to a historic home with a group of other artists. She began painting large impressionistic coastal landscapes and sold them online and through boutiques and galleries in the Southeast.
Pam spent the next several years raising her family in Charlotte and painting coastal landscapes inspired by travels with her husband and kids.
In 2023, she finally moved near the coast full-time. That move didn't come without difficulties. She lost her husband suddenly in 2021 after almost 30 years of marriage. He was her best friend and grad-school sweetheart. She needed a fresh start.
She is still in transition and now paints in her studio in Charleston, South Carolina. With the windows open, she can hear foghorns from the harbor and see palm trees from where she stands at her easel, which is pretty cool.
Now, she is inspired every day by the beautiful landscape of the Lowcountry.
MY PAINTING PROCESS
01
Each collection begins with an inspiration, whether a photo I’ve taken while traveling or right here at home. The Charleston area has beautiful marshes, beaches, and rainbow-colored historic buildings.
Can you think of anywhere better to be an artist?
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02
I pull together my inspiration photos and decide what I want to paint. I start with high-quality gallery-depth stretched canvas. I coat it with two to three coats of gesso, which is like a primer that gives a nice surface for painting.
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03
After mapping my collection plan and inspiration photo for each piece, I allow myself to stray from my road map. I lay out the composition and begin to work in layers. I paint either an underpainting or a layer of a color that I want to peek through the final brush strokes. I tend to go back and forth between several canvases within a collection, adding layers and then stepping back to see what’s next. I work intuitively, deciding what brush strokes or colors need to be laid in next.
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In the last portion of the process, I focus on one painting at a time, continuing the ‘push and pull’ by covering up and scraping back until I’m happy with the results. The final drips, energetic marks, and loose, messy brushstrokes are my favorite parts of the process.
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How do I know it’s finished?
I’ve been painting for over 20 years, so I’ve learned much from studying with teaching artists, fine-tuning my process, and a little trial and error.
But at the end of the day, that’s intuitive, too.