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Jeannie Breeding
Originally from St. Cloud, MN, Jeannie Breeding came to Colorado in 1975 where she spends as much time as possible in the great outdoors. She also taught art for 28 years and now devotes time to her two passions: painting and travel. To gather material for her work, she visited six continents and many unusual places. But Colorado is where her heart is and here she is assured to find the most interesting scenery as she ventures into the back country with her backpack and paints. The Colorado sky offers daily opportunities with its striking cloud formations and dynamic weather conditions. Jeannie says she is "especially intrigued by the unpredictable atmospheric changes, such as a winter day's fog," which can even surprise a weatherman.
Like a kaleidoscope, the sunlight and weather work together to make magical impressions on the landscape. For an artist, these moments are ideal qualities filled with luminescence, shadows, colors, textures, angles and soft curves.
Collectors of Jeannie's watercolor paintings enjoy wonderful examples of her ability to capture those magical moments when a light fog is rolling in or just lifting. More recently, Jeannie set aside her watercolor brushes and took to laying oils on canvas. Mastering the challenge of creating an enchanting fog-laden hillside in oils was the ultimate goal for Jeannie and she set off to China to capture the beauty of the Li and Yangtze Rivers as the fog suspends between the mountain ranges. With precision, she can creates a wonderous mood set in place by nature that often triggers a fond memory for the viewer.
In her landscapes, Jeannie recaptures the feelings and sensations that she had at the moment of encountering a scene.
Like Paul Cezanne once said, "Painting from nature is not copying the object; it is realizing ones sensations". Not just copying nature, she embellishes the composition, form, color and value. Her work portrays a specific mood in each painting. "The beginner copies nature," says John F. Carlson, "in all its literalness. He makes his painting look like the place. Soon he learns to omit the superfluous, group the essentials and arrange them into a more powerful and significant whole." Jeannie couldn't agree more and uses nature as her inspiration for a painting but adds her knowledge of composition and her heightened emotions to deliver a work of art that stirs the viewer's emotions.
She masterfully takes the viewer from a two-dimensional level into a world that has an air of mystery yet feels perfectly natural for a peaceful encounter. Whether she is bringing the chill of a fall day, or warmth of a spring afternoon, or even the threat of ominous dark clouds over the mountain range to her canvas, her intent is clear and the feeling is real. Her unmatched artistry immediately draws one in to linger and long for a familiar yet imaginary journey where we can feel something special. Her true gift is triggering an emotional reaction.
She received her B.S. degree in art from St. Cloud State University and her M.A.T. degree in Southwest Studies, with an emphasis in art, from Colorado College. Jeannie is an associate member of Women Artists of the West (WAOW,) a signature member of the Pikes Peak Watercolor Society (PPWS) and an associate member of Pikes Peak Plein Air Painters (PPPAP). After working in watercolor for 18 years and winning many prestigious awards, her oils are now available at Hunter-Wolff Gallery in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
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