An Interview with Brenda Wintermyer

Hello again! Just in case you didn’t see my last post, my name is Allie and I am the new social media intern for the Pennsylvania Art’s Experience (PAE). We are starting something really exciting for the PAE this year. From this point on I will be traveling throughout York, and beyond, to interview the artists that surround our organization.

I was honored to have Brenda Wintermyer as my first interview and allow me to come into her studio (on the second floor of 22 North Beaver St. just in case you were wondering), take a look around, and understand how she became the artist she is today—which is fabulous by the way.

The lovely Brenda in her studio.

Did you go to school for art? If so, where? How important was your education to your career? Was it necessary? 

I went to a local school, the York Academy of Arts, in the late 60s and early 70s and my major was illustration.

I was an artist in my mind long before I went to art school. That kind of happens in early school, secondary school.

I was always drawing at home; one year when I was about eight, Santa brought me a whole art studio with an easel, and all my materials, and I was like, I must be an artist. If Santa brought me this I must be an artist!

While in school, children have a tendency to do the things they can do well whether it be sports, reading, etc. They do a lot of it because it’s easy for them. So for me art was the easy thing. I was always drawing, and then in grade school when there were art projects that had to be done for class, my teachers would ask me to do the posters, because I could draw.

So I naturally just became branded as the artist of the class. In ninth grade my English teacher gave me a huge stimulus: she asked me to illustrate Charles Dickens’s Great Expectations. She wanted 12 illustrations as visual aids for the bulletin board. So by ninth grade I had my illustrations up on the bulletin board and that kind of sealed it for me, I am an artist, this is what I’m going to do with my life, I’m going to art school. That was a pivotal point for me, and of course she gave me great reviews and was so pleased with it. I honestly don’t even know what happened to those illustrations anymore, I know she used them for many years long after I was gone. That’s when I knew. From then on in high school I focused on electives that would prepare me to go to art school.

Yes, college is necessary because you do learn a lot in art school—you learn its intents, repetition, drawing everyday, figure drawing… it’s where I learned to draw the human form.

Does your illustration background have a big impact on your paintings?

Absolutely! I worked as an illustrator for 25 years; that was my art job. I really begin my art career until I was out of school a decade, because I was raising my children as a stay at home mom. But I always had my fingers in art, you know? When you’re a creative you’re always doing something. I was always painting and making things, entering in local art exhibits, things like that. But then I landed an illustrator’s position in a design firm, stayed there for six years, and then started my own freelance illustrator career. I also taught illustration and drawing for a decade at York College and the Bradley Academy for the Visual Arts/Art Institute of York.

Do you have other family members who are artists? Did that influence you at all? If so, how?

Why, yes I do. I have a large family and I would say five of us are artistically inclined. They never chose it as a profession, but they kept it as a hobby. However, I’m the only one who went on to do it as a career. But it is definitely inherent, I think.

To see more of Brenda’s work be sure to visit her gallery located on the second floor of 22 Beaver St.

Did you ever think that this would become your livelihood? Were there fears with your initial choice?

Well yes, there’s always those fears when you’re young going into art school. I wanted it to be a career, and I didn’t want to do anything else. I’m an artist, this is what comes easy for me, this is what I wanted to do as a career. Back then though, you have to remember in the 60s and 70s it was a lot harder to base a career around art, especially for women.

I had some interesting lucky breaks that happened to me throughout my art career. Well, I don’t know if I should say lucky breaks… I don’t believe so much in luck. I believe in preparedness. I think if you’re prepared and open, things can happen because you’re ready for it. I got an illustration position which lead me to become a freelance illustrator. I was in the illustration business for 25 years, and I had clients from all over south central Pennsylvania: Hershey Foods, Wolfgang Candy, Utz, Hanover Foods, clients all over the place. I worked for Pfaltzgraff as a freelance designer and an illustrator for almost 12 years. I had a good time doing this, it was my career and I always had at least six or seven clients that would keep me busy they were fabulous years filled with challenges, excitement, and creative coworkers.

Were there hard times for you while you were freelancing?

You always get kind of nervous, like what if it dries up? You always have that ‘what if’ and I still do now. What if my art stops selling? You always have that: the nature of the beast for creatives, when working from passion. Whether you’re a musician, dancer, artist, maker of things—whatever that is, you’re doing it on your own and you’re not necessarily connected to a corporation. It’s always that what if I don’t sell enough next month.

My ‘what ifs’ were not as scary as some artists’ ‘what ifs’ because I had a husband, I was the supplement income, and he was the main income. So, I knew I wasn’t going to starve. He had a good income, but still you want to be sustainable with your business. You want to do well—its pride, and you want people to appreciate what you do, like your art, and buy your product, whether it’s paintings, graphic design, or illustration.But you have a choice; you can choose to think you’re going to fail, or you can choose to think that you’re going to succeed. I have always chosen to think that I’m always going to succeed. I’m always going to land on my feet. So when you have those uncertain times, and you think to yourself what if I don’t get a project next month? something always comes in. I always tell myself something will come in and Ill be ok.

And sometimes, I had to create my own projects. I would approach a client or a company, and ask if they ever thought about doing this, and they will go yeah, I think that’s a great idea, and I had created my own project. That’s happened a lot with certain clients. You build relationships; when you build relationships with someone and they, or their company, need art services again, they come to you because they know and trust you. Building relationships is what makes you successful in anything. You can’t just sell your product—that’s not enough. That’s just a high sales pitch. There’s lots of pressure in that approach. You can’t do that. You have to become a friend, and it can’t be disingenuous, because people can read through that. You have to truly build a relationship and befriend people in general, and that turns into those people trusting you, feeling you have integrity, and feeling that you truly are a good person. Then they’ll think to themselves let’s call Brenda, and then you have to build a reputation that you deliver on time and are what they need. Overall, my years as an illustrator have been very good to me.

How do you feel about teaching and being a full-time artist? How do they relate and how do you separate the two?

While I was teaching at the college level, I could illustrate on the side. I always taught; even before when I was a stay-at-home mom, I would teach children at my house, so I definitely have a love for teaching. I feel like I was born to teach. I like to empower people and help them develop their skills. I love working with young people, but my desire was this: when I got to a certain age I was going to become the full-time painter, the painter I always wanted to be. So when I turned 50, that was my time. I pulled out of teaching at the college levels, and I pulled out of all my illustration clients and started painting full time. But I always kept some workshops, and I still teach for two reasons: one, because I missed the energy of other creative minds and the things they teach me; and two, it is a good supplement to painting. It is a steady capital flow coming through the studio. It is never a burden for me, and I still have 20-30 students on my roster who come in to learn. It’s also a good way to stay in touch with the community, because artists have a tendency to become reclusive and  can become separated from what’s happening around them. Bringing people in here, teaching them, and working with them helps them get involved with the movement downtown and helps them realize that they are a part of the movement downtown so I’m a big promoter of that. It helps me make new friends, plus they’re like marketing soldiers—they tell people where they go to learn, and get the word out. But I always set aside time for my painting, that’s what I am first. So if I have a busy painting schedule, that’s all I’ll do, and then I’ll schedule my classes around that time. I separate the two, teaching and painting by keeping a very structured studio, I learn from my students… when you have to articulate and teach what you know, you also grown and learn. We are all students.

Brenda’s Studio Hours: Thursday and Friday 1:00 – 6:00 Saturday, 11:00 – 3:00

Why is painting your medium of choice? Can you explain its differences and interactions with your illustration background? What it does for you as an artist and a person?

There really is a fine line between illustration and fine art, and to me, the line is this: illustration has an application, which means it’s going to be printed or reproduced, whether it’s in a book, brochure, cover, annual report, or in a magazine. It also has restrictions, like size, color choices, allowing for type to be dropped in… things like that. As far as technique, every one of my paintings could be an illustration.

With a piece of fine art, it may never ever be printed. It’s a piece of art that you are painting for yourself; you’re not painting for a client. That to me is the biggest difference between the two. Being that I was an illustrator, and now that I paint, my hand is so accomplished that there’s nothing I can’t draw. Just having that sense of accomplishment and confidence in my hand makes me paint very differently. If you will look around at my arts, genres change, my technique changes, my subject changes, my medium changes. I’m all over the place, which can be unusual for some fine artists. Some artists get interested in a certain medium or style and that’s where they want to be, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Having that illustration background has really guided my to where I am now. Working in the art industry for 30 plus years, with all the many experiences, and challenges, has been my  pebbles, laying a path for where I am now. And now, I feel like I can pretty much paint whatever I want to because I have that much faith in my hand. Now, of course, I don’t mean that in an arrogant way or that my art is superior over everyone else’s—of course not. I make lots of terrible paintings. Sometimes thing just are not working, whether I’m not mixing the right colors, it’s an off day, or my subject is not connecting with me. Things like that happen. I have painted over many, many canvases!

I’ve been challenging myself to move into a different direction. I’m trying to move away from painting reality, and I’ve been pushing myself in that direction for the past ten years. I want to change what’s in front of me; the easiest thing to do, for me, is to paint what’s in front of me. That, to me, is not that difficult. What’s difficult for me is to change it, to distort it somehow, and to move away and add my own interpretation—to change the color, to change the proportions and perspective—and that’s been difficult for me because I came from a realistic background.

Illustration and painting are both connected to me; I feel my illustration background always comes through in my paintings. I’m thankful for my illustration history if for no other reasons, it gave me confidence and diversity.

Why do you think painting is what you choose to do now?

Freedom. It’s liberating to me. Illustration paid the bills and it was a steady income, but painting to me is true freedom because it’s just me and my art. My art is my passion, and my passion is painting, more so than three-dimensional work, making things, and putting things together. I’m not into the craft art. I have lots of art colleagues that are. I don’t have a mind that works that way, where things are 3-D design or parts that open and shut. Wayne White’s exhibit in the Marketview building blew my mind! The visual art of painting excites me, the lusciousness of the paints, the colors, and the brush pushing against the canvas. It’s the way paint moves and blends, and smells.

Art is my passion. I don’t know if I could exist without it—it’s my love affair, it’s my lover, it sustains me, it feeds me, it caresses me, it fights with me, it’s my passion, and it’s my mojo. Now, my love is different: my love is my family, my husband, my children, my grandchildren… that’s my deepest love, but I separate it. My love and my passion are separate, like church and state. I don’t mix the two. Love is selfless, and you let go. You have to let go of love; you have to let your children go and be the people they need to be. You need to let go of your partner and let that person be who they need to be. You can’t pull them; that’s not love. Love is selfless; it is very pure and it’s very close to your heart, which often leads to hurt. Now, passion is completely selfish and is demanding. It won’t leave you alone; it pulls on you; it fights with you; it makes love to you; it does all this stuff and demands your attention and pulls you into its grip. That’s what makes me get up in the morning, or in the middle of the night and makes me feel like I need to be with it. I have to be thinking about my next painting, It’s my mojo—energy. Do I ever sacrifice my love for my passion? I haven’t yet, so I don’t think I would. My family is my love, so my love is always going to be first, even though my passion fights it sometimes. I can’t, but I think there are artists that did, and that’s why they became so great; because they could sacrifice their love. You can do that; where all your energy goes to your passion. Sometimes, that’s how you find your greatness, and there’s a fine line there. For me, as a wife and a mother and a grandmother, I try to balance it as much as I can, it’s not always easy. I think that everyone needs a passion. Your passion shouldn’t be your family or a person because then you’ll become obsessed with that person. I’m obsessed with my art. If it was a person, I’d be driving them crazy.

 

Brenda’s Studio Hours: Thursday and Friday 1:00 – 6:00 Saturday, 11:00 – 3:00

What artists do you look to for inspiration? 

I’m very drawn to the post-impressionists. Van Gough, The Fauves, they were rebels. They were a French group of artists who defied every rule there was. They were laughed at and kicked out of the salons in Paris. The French word for Fauves is wild beast, Matisse was one of them, and there were many under him. These guys came and said I’m done making pretty things, I’m going to flatten images, and they drew thick black lines around everything. They broke all those perspective rules and realist rules, and they weren’t accepted at first. They were avant-garde; they broke the rules, and they’re my heroes. Because they did that, I can do that! I can put black lines around my roses and a flattened  design in the background. And I adore Lautrec for his use of line, and illustration genius. And Cézanne because he was pushing towards the abstract, and started cubism; he also broke the rules.

Explain your use of color. Is there a particular color palette you lean more towards? Why is that?

Well, I’m an orange junkie. All different shades of orange. I really use all the colors, but I do definitely lean towards the fauve colors, which are oranges and teals and blues and char trusses. I rely on orange; the tube jumps up on my lap all the time. It’s like, get down, get back in the drawer, but I can paint without it. All kidding aside, if you walk around my studio, you’ll see paintings without orange in them.

I had an interviewer ask why I always paint with bright colors. My answer to that was this: I’m not afraid of color. I celebrate it. I attack it, it’s like wild beasts. I am a wild beast.

What are you hoping to do next?

I want to get this ball and chain of realism off. Don’t get me wrong, I love realism, and I appreciate artists who paint realistically, but it’s something that I want to get away from. I’ve done that and now I’d like to move on to something different. Picasso said it took him a lifetime to learn to paint like a child. I want to get to that point in my life where the ball and chain is gone, and I can simplify my art and it can be all about movement and color and pattern. I have a way to go, though. Are my paintings realistic? No, but they are still representational. I don’t know if I’ll ever become a full abstract artist; I don’t know if I’d enjoy that. I still like representing what’s in front of me, but I want to do it in a different way and that requires much discipline.

When you’re creating, how often are you thinking of the viewer? Do you think of them as critics? Fans? 

With illustration, always. When I’m painting a commission piece, they’re always on my shoulder. Sometimes I don’t always go where I want to with the piece because I’m not sure they’re going to like it, and I better just tone it down a little bit.

Especially with a commission piece, almost always, even though sometimes the last thing a patron will say to me when they walk out the door is paint this as if you’re painting it for you, we want this to be you, which is great. But when I’m painting for me, no, I don’t think about anybody but me or what’s in front of me… remember, passion is selfish.

What would you say to other young artists questioning whether they should pursue this as a career, especially now that there’s so much competition with the internet?

Depending on what kind of career, just really know your computer skills, know your programs, strive to be the best in your class.

Your portfolio is going to get you a job, not your grade average. How well you interview; have really good interview and professional skills, a good confident handshake—that’s really important. Be true; don’t be fake. Most people can read through that really well.

Getting into fine art as a young person is really hard because you have to pay the rent. You have to be earning additional income in another way.  I think illustration and graphic design is a great path because it pays the bills, and it can be exciting. I mean, computer skills are exciting. If I were an illustrator today, I’d have to know my computer skills because that is what’s in demand, it’s a wonderful tool. But yes, just try to be the best you can be and attach yourself to classmates, professors, colleagues: who you respect and admire for their skills and knowledge. These people will help build you into a better artist, better person, and set you on the right path for success.

Brenda’s Studio Hours: Thursday and Friday 1:00 – 6:00 Saturday, 11:00 – 3:00

What keeps you in York?

For one, history of being here. It’s a perfect location. You can be in New York City, Baltimore, D.C., and Philly all in a matter of hours. So it’s a nice hub; it’s rather inexpensive, and now there’s a growing art culture. And that was part of my mission when I started here; I wanted to be a part of that growing community. I’ve been doing this for the last 15 years because I try to stay really involved and be a part of the puzzle in making York a greater place to live, and it’s happening—which is really cool. And now, with technology, you can live in a small town like this and be a professional artist, and your work can be all over the world, which is something new.

 

How much have you seen the York Art community grow in the past few years… Where do you see it headed?

When I started coming downtown about 15 years ago it was just a little tiny art scene, and I was part of that. Now it’s grown way beyond me, which is a beautiful thing. I like that there’s a lot going on everywhere now and that I’m just one of many. This is what I wanted it to become; it’s happening, it’s wonderful, it’s beautiful, and I’m still a part of it. I love seeing other artists getting popular and selling their art; it’s just a great thing.

It’s not at the tipping point yet; all these vacant buildings will eventually be filled. Eventually it’s going to become an artsy little town.

And there’s no nationally recognized names or stores. It’s all mom and pop shops filled with a class of creative people who are making a living—and it’s happening now. Entrepreneurs opening up shops and selling what they make and loving what they do. York’s going to be that town, where people want to visit because it is authentic, grassroots, real; a place where people celebrate music, dance, poetry, visual art, 3d art, makers of things. Give us five more years.

Thanks again to Brenda for, most importantly, sharing with us her passion and love for our tenacious York arts community. Keep on the look out for more posts heading your way in the coming weeks. 

See you soon!