Meet the artist - Sharon Petersen

Blowin' in the Wind by Sharon Petersen - watercolor

This month we are featuring interviews with the artists who are in our upcoming art show - sight/unseen - at The Artist's Den in Concord, May 21-26, 2016.

This is Sharon Petersen - what do you like most about living in Concord?

It was early 1980 when I moved to Clayton from Chicago and I immediately felt “at home,” and each subsequent year has only solidified that feeling. 

From the oak-covered emerald green winter and spring hills to the clear blue summer skies leading to our long glorious fall, there is no better place to live or to be inspired to create art based on nature. 

The only challenge I've experienced is the extreme heat in summer which makes it difficult to paint en plein air. 

What medium(s) do you plan to use for your piece in this show?

As a professional landscape designer, I had always worked with graphite, markers and colored pencils. After I retired three years ago, I tried watercolor painting for the first time, as I had always promised myself I would do. I fell in love and haven't tried anything else since. There is so much to learn in this medium and I know that I haven't scratched the surface yet. I'm content to stay with my watercolor practice, but I may surprise myself and add another media. My vision seems to be begging for additional texture of some kind.

Any new techniques or materials you've learned about recently?

I learned about using watercolor ground on stretched artist canvas, then painting over it in watercolor. This excited me as it opened new avenues for textural experimentation. The work also needn't be framed using this method.

Waiting for You by Sharon Petersen - watercolor

How long have you been making art?

I always felt the need to be creative no matter what direction my work took me, from the fiber arts to black and white photography and dark room work to landscape design. It wasn't until I studied with architect Christopher Grampp that I learned that “everyone can learn how to draw.” Eventually I came to believe that. 

What's the best piece of advice you've received as an artist?

Grampp also taught me that the only way to improve is by practicing every day. This has been true for me in pencil sketching and watercolor painting - I now strongly believe this!

What advice do you have for a new artist?

Use good materials and practice every day. Accept from the start that most of your work won't be a masterpiece and you won't be disappointed.