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ARTIST FOCUS
Julie Beth Wileman
A
fter retiring from working in educa-
tion in 2008, Julie Beth Wileman
began to paint. “My sister-in-law gave me
three visits to an art studio and I arrived,
supplies in hand, along with a bucket
load of fears,” Wileman recalls. “I had a
graceful, but persistent guide and after
those three weeks I was hooked.”
Wileman works mostly in oils, but
dabbles in other mediums “to keep
the playfulness” that she needs. “I am
envious of the freedom in which children
create. I believe their freedom comes
from focusing on whom or what they are
creating, not how,” she says. “ThoughI am always working on the how through
workshops, studio visits, reading and
videos, I fi nd that what really pushes me
forward in my art is who or what I am
painting.”
Wileman adds, “I paint stillness, or
maybe a better way to describe it is a
moment in time. Joy is my focus whether
it is a landscape that has a special feel, a
pause in the bloom of a fl ower, or even an
emotion in an abstract. I enjoy painting
for others and fi nding that joy in their
memories. Portraits bring out my best,
I think, because I am focusing on the
person along with the special, candidmoment or memory that their picture
represents. When I began painting my
secret goal was to be able someday to
paint Amy, my lifelong friend’s daughter
who died at age 12. Reaching that
emotional milestone keeps me motivated
to keep working on the how and fi nding
joy in the who and the what.”Want to See More?
[email protected]
http://www.juliewileman.com
@julie.wilemanRoadside Oak, oil on canvas, 18 x 24"Mother’s Day, oil on canvas, 30 x 24" Amy, oil on canvas, 9 x 12"