The Lifting Storm
Being a painter changes your world. You see more of it, and you see it in different ways.
Every painter has heroes. If you take the time to study the work of your current hero, and kind of bathe in their way of seeing the world, after a while you find yourself seeing vistas around you as if they were painted by that artist.
This happens over and over, as you soak in more influences, and develop your tastes.
I took up landscape painting when I lived in California, and when I left I had grown to know it and see it in very different ways.
When I moved to New Mexico I was already looking for places to paint, and people to paint with.
As a painter you find yourself in places you would never have been to, and with people you would never have bumped into otherwise.
A group of you might find yourselves in someone’s private, secret garden.
You’ll take an adventure down this dusty road, because you know after 2.7 miles you’ll round a bend and see a river sparkling with light before some majestic outcrops of rock, and a half hour later the light will be making them glow in a magical way.
You might abandon your easel in the middle of some desolate wetlands because you hear voices and gunfire somewhere behind you.
You’ll find frustration, satisfaction, heartache and joy, as each new adventure on your canvas unfolds.
When working on pieces at home you might move your easel and painting table all around the house to catch the best light throughout the day.
Being a painter is not just a way of seeing the world: It’s being excited to find ways to show it to others.
It’s gratifying when people recognize advances in your technique, but truly thrilling when they find themselves transported to the world you saw, felt and then expressed in paint.
Education
BFA, Philadelphia college of art.
Began studying formally at the Philadelphia college of art, then later at the San Francisco art institute, and then at the art students’ league in NYC.
Career and representation
Storyboard artist working in NY at Neal Adam’s Continuity Studios in the 80’s
Storyboard artist working in Los Angeles and NY for ad agencies 1985-2004
Storyboard artist working from home for ad agencies across the country 2005-present (incorporated as Storyboard Squad, Inc., with my husband Steve Worthington).
Landscape painter since 1997.
Plein Air New Mexico artists’ choice award winner 2005, 2007.
Plein Air New Mexico award of excellence (chosen by Ray Roberts) 2018.
‘Artist to Watch’ in Southwest Art Magazine, June 2016.
Participant in:
Telluride Plein Air, July 2016
Sonoma Plein Air, Sept. 2016
Carmel Plein Air, May 2017
Instructor at PACE, 2018
Currently represented in Santa Fe by Acosta Strong Gallery.
Connect with Meridee on Instagram, and view more of her work on her website.
