About

I come from a long line of artistically inclined women. Some of these female relatives did not pursue commercial avenues for their art, but instead led “artful lives” filled with gardening and flower arranging, creating culinary masterpieces, designing clothing and costumes for their offspring, and making sure their homes expressed their sensitivity to color and place. I feel indebted to these women for teaching me how to “see” with all my senses, and continue to feel their presence in my life.

At an early age, I began drawing and painting, taking fine art classes in pastel, watercolor, oil and acrylic while attending elementary school in a Virginia suburb of Washington, D.C. In junior high school my portraits of the Beatles sold to classmates for $1. In high school, teachers purchased several of my paintings, and I won awards in local art exhibits. After studying English Lit in college and having a successful career in retail fashion in stores and boutiques from Georgetown to Palm Beach, I returned to painting, taking classes that revived my skill and passion. By 1992, I was exhibiting my watercolors and painting full-time.

Painting a portrait for a friend was the impetus for offering portraits and has led to painting over 90 commissioned portraits since 1993, many of children and their pets. People are fascinating to me, and when I paint them I strive to capture more than just a physical likeness. I hope that my portraits convey some of the intangible essence of the personality of each subject. On viewing the portrait of her daughter for the first time, one of my clients remarked, “Oh, she looks so ALIVE!” That unique spark of aliveness that belongs to each individual is what I strive for in all my portraits.

Most of my paintings of other subject matter deal with the way light defines form, and I am usually drawn to isolated parts of the whole rather than the larger landscape. My choice of subject is determined by what speaks to me. These choices are initially unconscious. There is no clear reason why a particular doorway beckons to be painted or one piece of fruit seems suddenly significant. This personal and intuitive subject selection provides a way to explore my own inner life, providing a balance for the more structured discipline of portrait painting.

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Sydney’s watercolors have been juried into regional and national watercolor exhibitions and have won numerous awards. She has earned signature membership in the Baltimore Watercolor Society, Potomac Valley Watercolorists and the Virginia Watercolor Society. Though largely self-taught, over the past fifteen years classes with Roberta Carter Clark, Mary Whyte, Arne Westerman, Carolyn Grosse Gawerecki and Lisa Semarad have informed and formed her art. Currently, Sydney lives in Annapolis, Maryland with her husband, Steve, and Maine Coon cat, Agatha. From 2004 to 2006, Sydney served on the Board of Directors as Secretary and Events Chair for the Maryland Federation of Art, an all-media artists' organization with a gallery in Annapolis.

RECENT JURIED GROUP EXHIBITIONS

CURRENT PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

Baltimore Watercolor Society (juried membership)

Potomac Valley Watercolorists (juried membership)

Maryland Federation of Art

Portrait Society of America    

PAST PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

The Art League @ Torpedo Factory  1997 - 2000

Virginia Watercolor Society 1995 - 2000,  Artist Member (juried into 3 exhibits)

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