Jeannie Breeding taught art for 28 years, but she still feels like she’s learning about her own talent and passions. After 18 years of painting in watercolors, Breeding switched to oils three years ago.
“When I first switched from watercolor to oil, my paint was thin. I painted with really thin paint and a lot of transparent glazes,” she said. “I’m still learning – the colors are different than they were with watercolors. Now, I’m using much thicker paint. I think we grow as artists and we transition from things we don’t like and all of a sudden they turn into things we love.”
She had avoided painting with oils, although she loved them, because the smells exacerbated her asthma; she was overjoyed to find odorless turpentine a few years ago.
The award-winning artist will show 20 paintings from the past year in “Lands Near & Far,” a September exhibit at Hunter-Wolff Gallery, 2510 W. Colorado Ave.
The show lives up to its title, with Breeding’s depictions of her home environment and of travels in the Southwest, China, Spain and Greece; she’s traveled to six continents and would love to see more of Africa. Closer to home, she hikes, cross-country skis and snowshoes, always with a camera to capture inspiration for her art, although most of her work is done plein air.
She admits that painting “soft and tranquil” scenes offered a refuge from the hectic life of a teacher. She taught 14 years in middle school, 11 years in high school, two years in elementary school and one year with adults.
“I really enjoyed all the levels. I loved high school teaching because the students have such ability. And I loved the uninhibited creativity of the elementary school. It was really delightful.”
In college and afterward in Minnesota, Breeding was a jeweler, potter and a weaver, then moved to Colorado and started teaching in District 11.
“I don’t know that I ever would have become a painter without having to teach painting. I started watercoloring because I felt I needed to get better at it to teach my students. And that’s when I fell in love with painting. I learned so much, not just about painting. For example, when you’re having your students paint the rainforest, you have to learn about the rainforest.”
Breeding’s work also can be seen in the Second Floor Studios at 2418 W. Colorado Ave., in the Michael Garman building (entrance off Colbrunn Court, just west of Bancroft Park). She enjoys being part of a community of artists, with its camaraderie and creative energy.
She’s drawn to subdued colors and soft brushwork, which explains her fondness for departed artists such as Isaac Levitan, J.M.W. Turner, Winslow Homer and the Hudson River painters.
“I really try not to paint like any of them. I’ve had people say, ‘Who do you want to paint like?’ And I’ll say, ‘A better me.’ I want to paint like myself; everybody else is already taken.”
It’s working.
Comments