Paintings by Debbie Wardrope
Debbie Wardrope is a Bay Area native and longtime Pleasanton resident who has always loved art and has pursued painting for most of her life, even during her 20-year career in mortgage banking.
Debbie graduated "With Distinction" from the California College of Arts and Crafts (now California College of the Arts) in Oakland with a BFA in illustration. Her work has been recognized through numerous awards, including "Best of Class" and merit awards at the Alameda County Fair. She has exhibited in many group and solo shows, such as Art Expo in New York and has had paintings in galleries from Yountville to Carmel. Debbie's work is included in private and corporate art collections around the nation. Locally, Alameda County and the City of Pleasanton own her paintings.
Debbie's primary medium is pastel, but she also paints in oils and acrylics. Her recent work focuses on the effects of light at sunset and twilight on the city, landscape and ocean. Some of her latest projects capture the historic beauty of downtown Pleasanton. Her influences include such early California artists as Frank Cuprien, Mary DeNeale Morgan and Granville Redmond.
Debbie says, "I believe that art should be beautiful, accessible and evoke an emotional response in the viewer. I strive to create images that are immediately recognizable but are things that are frequently overlooked in the rush of everyday life. I love to capture a moment in time through the use of light and color. I want my art to glorify God and his amazing creation and create feelings of peace, serenity and joy in the viewer."
A signature member of the Pastel Society of the West Coast, Debbie teaches pastel painting classes for adults and art classes for children through the City of Pleasanton and Las Positas College Community Education. She has also done demonstrations and workshops for several art associations. She lives in Pleasanton with her husband, two children and an assortment of rescued dogs and cats. Debbie's work is represented by Studio 7 Fine Arts in Pleasanton and New Masters Gallery in Carmel.
Most recently, Debbie was honored to be selected by Senator Ellen Corbett to produce a painting representing her district to hang at the state capitol building in Sacramento, CA. The painting, Pleasanton Evening, is currently on display in the meeting rooms behind the Senate Chamber through August of 2010.
Twilight Magic: Artist Debbie Wardrope Captures Downtown at Dusk
By Emily West, Pleasanton Weekly
Living in Pleasanton since she was four, resident artist Debbie Wardrope has long known the romanticism that settles over Main Street as day fades into night. "The evening is when the downtown comes alive for me," she says. "When the sun is setting and the street and neon signes come on, there's almost a magicial quality there that I love to capture in my work."
Wardrope's striking pastels bring out the glowing quality in her portrayal of the Pleasanton arch and shops. She also works in oils and acryilic to show the sun hitting the valley's vineyards.
People seem to be attracted to the hometown feeling that is emulated in the images.
Both originals and prints of her downtown works can also be seen at Studio 7 Fine Arts, located at 400 Main Street.
To learn more about Wardrope, visit www.debbiewardrope.com
Pleasanton Artist Captures Hometown Images in Pastels
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"My parents occasionally bought fine art pieces to hang in our home. I grew up believing that fine art was a possible direction for me because I saw my parents supporting other artists," Wardrope said.
After earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Illustration from
"When I had children, it was actually my husband that encouraged me to pursue my art," Wardrope said.
Home with two young children and shuttling them to school and activities, Debbie enjoyed the ease of working in pastels.
"I love the colors, the vibrance. Plus it's a dry medium and it fit well into my lifestyle as a busy mom. I can stop in the middle of a project to pick the kids up from school," Wardrope says.
Wardrope started her ongoing relationship with
"It's surprising how much variety there really is in this area as far as material for fine art," Wardrope says.
New commissions for Debbie include the oak tree in
When she starts a piece, she visits the location several times to take photos and later she works from in her studio.
"I probably work from three to five pictures for the piece. I like to explore a subject in detail," Wardrope says. "I'm not copying a photo exactly. I'm creating a painting working with varied images."
Depending on the subject's complexity, Debbie will spend anywhere from eight to 60 hours on a single piece.
"Painting is constant problem-solving," she says. "I spend a lot of time getting the shapes right and layering the colors."
Dirk Christiansen, the owner of Studio 7 Fine Art Gallery, admires Debbie's local focus and says her personality is mirrored in the images she creates.
"Debbie is soft and gentle, the kind of person you'd want to have as your neighbor," he says. "Her paintings reflect that soothing aspect of her and I think people are drawn to that."
Between all these bouts of creativity, Debbie also teaches art classes and summer art camps for children through the City of
Owner Dirk Christiansen says Debbie will be the first art teacher in a series of classes held in the studio after hours.
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Debbie is eager to spread her love for art to other emerging artists in the community.
"This class is mainly for beginning and intermediate adult artists. My hope is they will create a piece they are proud to hang in their home."
Debbie was selected by Senator Ellen Corbett to produce a painting to represent her district in the 8th Annual California Contemporary Art Collection currently showing at the State Capitol building in Sacramento. The painting, "Pleasanton Evening" is shown at left.
"This painting was an interesting challenge for me. I was scheduled to demonstrate a downtown Pleasanton piece for the Pleasanton Art Leaque and the Livermore Art Association in February and didn't have a shot I was excited about painting. I went downtown and wandered around, looking for a scene that incorporated a lot of the "glow" seen around twilight. Having done three Pleasanton paintings in a square format, I wanted to do something a little different. I took a lot of pictures and spent time coming up with a format and composition I liked. (I rarely use one photo as reference material and most of my paintings require at least 3 to 5 different photographs to create a piece. I often photograph the same scene at all different times of the day/year to get what I'm looking for and I believe the more time spent looking at a subject, the better my interpretation of the scene will be.)"
"In this particular case, the time of year created a problem because the trees were all bare. While I liked the effect of the bare branches, I wasn't sure how they'd look in the painting. When I did the demo for the art groups, the branches were bare but as the painting evolved, it became increasingly obvious that I needed leaves on the trees. Artistic license is a great thing so entire trees were added, giving the scene the feel I wanted!"
"Shortly after the demo, I was contacted by Jaime Dowell, owner of Studio 7. She had recommended me as one of several artists to Senator Ellen Corbett to paint a piece representing her district. I was thrilled at the opportunity and even more excited when I found out I'd been chosen. Since this painting was the one I had available, it worked out perfectly."
