Emerging Artists | Emily Schultz

Painting from life

Emily Schultz, Home to the Garden, oil, 18 x 24.

Emily Schultz, Home to the Garden, oil, 18 x 24.

This story was featured in the October 2015 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art October 2015 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story

Whether Emily Schultz is painting figures, landscapes, or still lifes, her artistic mission is focused on conveying beauty to her viewers. “Beauty is really important to me—I think to all of us. And that it is in the world shows the heart of God to us,” Schultz says.

The Washington artist is a recent second-place award-winner in a BoldBrush Painting Competition that included submissions by artists from across the country. Schultz is self-taught but has taken classes and workshops from painters she admires. She is grateful to be living in an age when she can see great art on the Internet and learn from master artists through their DVDs and videos. But if she has to point out the single most important influence on her work, it is painter Dan Gerhartz. “I am inspired by his life and passion, and I love his painterly approach and use of color temperature,” Schultz says. “Sometimes I look through his book, Not Far From Home, just for the comfort his work gives me.”

In works such as SUNFLOWERS AND APPLES and HOME TO THE GARDEN, the artist aims to evoke a similar classic yet expressive style as Gerhartz’s. Schultz says both paintings were inspired by trips to outdoor markets. SUNFLOWERS AND APPLES sprung from a recent trip to Seattle’s popular Pike Place Market. Schultz says it’s difficult for her to leave the bustling market without buying bouquets of flowers. She also brought home the blue-and-white ceramic mug, both earmarked for her next still life.

HOME TO THE GARDEN originated from a trip to a nearby farm stand looking for things that were fun to paint like corn and cucumbers. She also convinced the farm-stand owner to sell her a bunch of plums still attached to the branch. “There is something more exciting to me about painting something living like the flowers or vegetables,” Schultz says. “They give me a time constraint because they have a shelf life, so it makes a painting fresher. And painting flowers can be less stressful than keeping a model happy, but I still get to paint from life.” —Bonnie Gangelhoff

representation
Lawrence Gallery, Sheridan, OR; Haven, Springfield, OR.

Featured in the October 2015 issue of Southwest Art magazine–click below to purchase:
Southwest Art October 2015 print issue or digital download Or subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss a story!

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