Watercolor Artist - USA (2019-04)

22 Watercolor artist | APRIL 2019

Lovers(on pages 20-21), from the “Working South”

series, portrays a quilter from Berea, Ky. The portrait

exemplifies Whyte’s keen ability to relate to the intense

dedication sensitively—as well as to the worries and

difficulties—faced daily by workers across industries

large and small. Whyte’s forte lies in her ever-persistent

need to refine her compositions until they reveal a

greater story. “I had her husband hold up the quilt as

she walked back and forth in front of it while I

photographed her,” says Whyte. “I was particularly

interested in studying her hands and arms. Later, I

redesigned the idea, lowering the quilt and fitting the

composition into a square format, which enabled me to

connect the bent ‘S’ shape of the subject to that of the

young lovers.”

The subject told Whyte that she made the quilt when

she and her husband were first married, inspired by the

“Cherry Blossom Riddle Song” or just the “Riddle Song.”

The song is an English folk tune brought over by early

settlers to the Appalachian Mountains.Often sung as a

lullaby, it’s about the perplexities of life.

Loversis at once a painting of a highly skilled quilter

and artisan, as well as an allegory of youth and old age,

of both young and enduring love. These abilities to tell

a story visually, so personal yet so universal, place

Whyte’s work securely in the realm of great American

genre painting.

CONCEPT AND COMPOSITION

“I like the neighborhood atmosphere of Charleston,”

Whyte observes as she explains her concept and process

in creating Blue Plate (above). “We have small grocery

stores and a lot of diners, and beautiful, old, historic

buildings with large windows, like the site where I did

this painting. Th e wonderful north light coming in on

my model made the highlights and skin tones cool and

the shadows warm.”

Whyte was eating breakfast at one of her beloved

diners one morning, enjoying the people-watching and

general hubbub in the kitchen. She was struck by the

Blue Plate (watercolor on paper, 23x33)

Blue Plate (fi nal thumbnail)