Blue Moon Gallery and Frame in Brevard presents the work of wildlife and landscape painter Dwight Wallace. Wallace, a native of northern Virginia, is influenced by the work of Maryland landscape painter Michael Godfrey and Canadian wildlife painter Robert Bateman.
Blonde Over Blue. Dwight Wallace, artist
“Aside from Dwight’s mastery of painting light, I admire his brush techniques along with the realism that he is able to create in his wildlife portraiture,” says Blue Moon gallery owner Rob Travis.
Wallace became interested in drawing as a child and attempted painting for years without much success. After a 30-year hiatus from art to focus on career and family, he was prodded back into painting by his wife, Lori, who gave him art classes for Christmas in 2003. His first instructor, John Young, was a British World War II veteran and retired Fairfax County, VA, high school art teacher. Through classes with Young, Wallace learned traditional English landscape painting. However, these works were absent any wildlife and when Wallace attempted to paint animals on his own they remained, according to him, amateurish.
After retiring from a career in imagery analysis with the U.S. federal government and moving to Brevard with his wife in 2014, Wallace began learning from wildlife artist Bob Travers. “Through Bob’s teaching and coaching, and with retirement giving me ample time to paint, I have reached a level that I had long hoped to achieve,” says Wallace.
His process begins by looking for subjects with dramatic light and interesting textures. He often blends wildlife images with landscapes to suggest a situation that allows the viewer to create a story about what might happen next. One example is Wishful Thinking, in which he combined information from two different photos.
“I try to capture a sense of atmosphere through dramatic light and use of color in my paintings and attempt to capture a realistic portrait of the animals,” says Wallace.
Blue Moon Gallery & Frame is located at 24 East Main Street in Brevard. To learn more, visit BlueMoonGalleryandFrame.com or call 828.565.2566.
