Susan L. Whitehouse : American Impressionism : Fine Portraiture

My first mentors!
Susan L. Whitehouse, an American Impressionist, paints in the tradition of the Boston School. This school of painting was pioneered by Edmund Tarbell, Frank Benson, Joseph DeCamp and Philip Hale, among others (the "Ten"). These turn-of-the-century painters brought a fresh vision to their European training which fostered the pursuit of truth and beauty found in nature. The American group combined the French Impressionists' color sensitivity with the discipline of fine and accurate draftsmanship that may be traced back to the seventeenth and eighteenth century studios of Jacques Louis-David, Ingres and Gerome.

This French atelier (studio) tradition has been continued in the United States. The orderly progression of studies includes drawing extensively from plaster casts and figure drawing and continues with still life, landscape, portrait and figure painting. The artists are always working directly from life in order to capture a sense of light and a reverance for nature in their art.

Emphasis on accurately rendered form, sensitivity to beautiful line and true values, and an impressionistic delight in color and light mark Whitehouse's work. Serene vision and playfulness set the tones while attention to detail and technique complete each painting. She aspires always to maintain the high ideals established by this dedicated tradition.

At present Whitehouse is drawn to the complexities of fine still life painting. She constructs her designs with a subtle control that draws the viewer into and around her atmospheric and often whimsical pieces. Fine portraiture is also a favorite challenge. These renderings depict more than a mere likeness. Summers find her capturing coastal New England with a fresh vision. Ms. Whitehouse brings her traveling easel wherever she goes. Her views of Utah, Colorado, Mexico and Paris are vivid and personal.

Whitehouse has created a series of oil paintings depicting the revival of model schooner races conducted yearly by the the lobstermen and local boat builders of Cape Porpoise, Maine, and another series documenting the building of a classic Herreshoff sloop. Recently she completed several paintings depicting her Polish heritage, many of which were shown at the Polish Consulate in New York City.

Whitehouse's most recent original oil paintings of Matinicus Isle, located outside of Penobscot Bay beyond Monhegan Island, provide a rare glimpse of Matinicus, home to generations of Maine lobster fishermen.

Whitehouse shows her original oils, pastels and limited edition prints at her studio overlooking Cape Porpoise Harbor as well as at her winter studio in the Lincoln Street Millworks in Biddeford, Maine. Her work can also be seen in galleries elsewhere in Maine, Colorado, Boston and Cape Cod.

She is an exhibiting member of

The American Society of Portrait Artists
Maine Women in the Arts
The Art Guild of the Kennebunks
The North Shore Arts Association, Gloucester, MA
The Rockport Art Association, Rockport, MA
The American Society of Marine Artists
Academic Artists Association

Recent awards include:

Academic Artists Association, Excellence in Oils, Portraits 2004
Rockport Art Association: George O. Davies Silver Medal 2003
Art Guild of the Kennebunks, Best in Oil 2003
Rockport Art Association: Elliot Liskin Memorial Award for Excellence in Painting 2000
River Club, Kennebunkport, Honorable Mention 2000
Rockport Art Association: C. B. Brown Memorial Award for Excellence in Painting 1999
Rockport Art Association: Landscapes in Oil, Honorable Mention 1998
Art Guild of the Kennebunks: Best in Oils 1998

National Juried Shows:

Academic Artists Association 2004
Maine Arts Commission, The State House, Augusta ME 2003
A. R. Mitchell Museum, Trinidad, CO 2003
Academic Artists Association 2002
Hudson Valley Art Association 2002