Wendi Schneider
Schneider writes “My work in the States of Grace series illuminates transformative moments of spiritual connection to nature, rooted in the serenity I find in the sinuous elegance of organic forms. I photograph intuitively to make the intangible tangible, creating impressions of fleeting moments of vanishing beauty in our vulnerable environment to honor the ephemeral. . .”
“On Christmas, I love to share a project or a practice that celebrates beauty. I didn’t have to think long and hard to consider an artist who has a legacy of creating work that unabashedly reinterprets the natural world in ways that make us slow down, take a deep breath, and relax into wonderment. Wendi Schneider’s photographs are sanctuaries for the soul, respites from the strife and turmoil that the world presents us with. Her photographs remind us that the natural world is waiting for us, to bask in it’s magic…and yes, beauty.”
Aline Smithson
Schneider says “I create illuminated illusions – tender, gilded offerings of fleeting moments of beauty in our vulnerable environment . . . My process creates a surface that shimmers as the viewer’s position and ambient light transition, reflecting the mercurial light at capture. Elevating the ephemeral, I follow instinctively where each image and print takes me, often altering the color, texture or gold, and honoring the variations within the edition. Each of these unique framed prints is a one-of-a-kind object of reverence.”
Wendi Schneider’s portfolio The Patina Collection was chosen as Work of Merit in the 2020 Rfotofolio Call.
The Patina Collection is an assemblage of gilded prints in the ‘States of Grace’ series paired with antique frames – the synthesis of 40 years of collecting turn-of-the-twentieth-century art and objects and creating images inspired by the sinuous elegance of organic forms.
“Schneider has perfected a gilding process in which her images seemingly dance on the paper’s surface amidst reflections of light on precious metals, creating a synthesis of technique and subject.”
Read the article: Lens Magazine, Issue #82: Summertime HOT, July 2021
Flamingo was recently honored by the Independent Photographer Awards, judged by Brandei Estes, Head of Photographs at Sotheby’s London. Flamingo will be presented at the Independent Photographer magazine’s annual International Gallery Exhibitions in Milan and Berlin in Fall 2021.
OPR Gallery
Viale Corsica, 99– Milano, IT
officeprojectroom.com
On view September 9-12, 2021
CLB BERLIN GALLERY
Aufbau Haus at Moritzplatz
Prinzenstraße 84.2, Berlin-Kreuzberg
clb-berlin.de/en/
On view October 6-10, 2021
Learn more about the award and view the full list of winners and finalists
Wendi Schneider appeared in today’s Daily Inspiration for Voyage Denver, a community-oriented magazine whose mission is to “build a platform that fosters collaboration and support for small businesses, independent artists and entrepreneurs, local institutions and those that make our city interesting.”
Read the interview: Voyage Denver, Daily Inspiration, July 7, 2021
Wendi Schneider was a featured artist in the July issue of Beta Developments in Photography Magazine, a publication dedicated to presenting the portfolios of artists whose work displays the many varied disciplines and styles of fresh contemporary photography.
Read the issue: Beta Developments in Photography Magazine, Issue 40, July 2021
Wendi appeared alongside a host of illustrious participants in the Center for Creative Photography’s (CCP) video “Why Photography,” as part of a virtual fundraising event supporting initiatives at CCP. At 19:05, Wendi discusses her experience working with CCP and the center’s important work preserving the history of photography.
Watch the video: Center for Creative Photography, Why Photography? June 30, 2021
“In ‘Evenings with the Moon’ I contemplate the power of universal experiences to unify and find transcendence. My images of the night draw on the moon as muse and the juxtaposition of darkness and light to express our shared longing for freedom, peace, love, and harmony amidst the chaos of the world. The gilded prints echo the luminosity of their celestial inspiration. This synthesis of form and content, paired with poetry and music, encourages the viewer to consider the commonalities in our collective consciousness.”
— Wendi Schneider
Read the article: Nancy McCrary, South x Southeast Photo Magazine, June 6, 2021
“I have chosen six photographers for this showcase whose art runs a wide gamut of what “staged imagery” can involve. Several have found imaginative ways to transform the everyday through reinvention and abstraction, finding the power in the ordinary. While others seek to evoke a mood, capture vanishing moments of beauty, or even include the presentation of the print as part of their staging.
A photo reviewer once told me I was a film-maker – and I think that describes these photographers as well. The desire to control what exists within and without the frame is at the heart of staged photography.”
–– Ann Mitchell
“We would like to mention some photographers with outstanding technical skills, original approaches, and storytelling capabilities.”
— Passepartout Judges
“It has been a year of more and less. More appreciation, compassion, loss, recognition, reflection, solitude, and work. Less travel, interaction, and concern about unimportant things. Even mundane tasks have developed into more meditative moments. I am acutely aware of the passage of time and of my emotions, which seem to resonate more deeply. And as usual, but perhaps more than ever, I have turned to my art for serenity and respite, as making art to celebrate beauty has always been my personal refuge…” — Wendi Schneider
Wendi contributed a post to Still in the Studio, a weekly series created in response to the pandemic, where artists offer insight into their work and artist practice.
Read the post: Wendi Schneider, Still in the Studio, February 3, 2021
“Trees are silent protagonists in the work of Wendi Schneider, which is rooted in the serenity she finds in the sinuous elegance of organic forms. She shares moments of respite in beauty as an antidote to the unease in the world in which we live. “If I can touch someone else with my work, I’m deeply moved and grateful. I hope that viewers will appreciate the beauty and embrace the need to care for our endangered planet.”
— Artdoc
View the portfolio: Artdoc Photography Magazine, Issue nr 2, 2020
We are thrilled to share that Wendi’s image “Refuge” is featured in Our Magnificent Planet, the latest publication by Brooks Jensen and Maureen Gallagher. The book contains 300 stunning color and black and white photographs celebrating our planet.
Purchase the book: Our Magnificent Planet, edited by Brooks Jensen and Maureen Gallagher, October 2020
In hectic times, nature always has a positive effect on the human mind. Nature brings reflection and tranquility. After experiencing nature, we can look at life from a different perspective. In our Japanese Garden exhibition, art photographers show the natural world with their sense of serenity.
— Artdoc
“Wendi is widely known for her ongoing series of hand-gilded photographs, States of Grace –– illuminated impressions of grace in the natural world. Drawn to the serenity she finds in the sinuous elegance of organic forms; she embraces photography to preserve vanishing moments of beauty in our vulnerable environment. She has perfected a gilding process in which her images seemingly dance on the paper’s surface amidst reflections of light on precious metals, creating a synthesis of technique and subject.”
—Denver Women Magazine
Read the interview: Denver Women Magazine, November 2021
Wendi Schneider was a Featured Photographer in the 158th Issue of Visual Art, the magazine published by England’s Royal Photographic Society Visual Art Group. Many thanks to the Royal Photographic Society for this wonderful feature.
“I was in New Orleans last year and found ‘A Gallery for Fine Photography’ and it was here, among a fantastic selection of images, that I discovered the work of Denver-based artist Wendi Schneider. Her work literally shone out, by the use of precious metals to gild the reverse of her work, she creates other-worldly representations of the environment around us. I admire the way she has produced a beautiful body of work in a unique and magical way.“
– Ray Higginbottom, Editor, ARPS
Read the article: Visual Art Magazine, No. 158 Issue 2, 2020
A selection from the States of Grace series entitled The Wisdom of Trees was awarded Gold in the Nature/Trees category of the Prix de la Photographie Paris Awards by an international jury.
In addition, a selection of images from Evenings with the Moon was awarded Honorable Mention in the Fine Art category.
“Her work is influenced by the lush landscapes of Memphis and New Orleans, her collection of art and antiques from the turn of the twentieth century, and a background in painting and art history – in particular the work of Steichen, Whistler, and other Pictorialists and Tonalists. She turned to photography in the early 1980s to create references for her paintings, then combined the mediums…”
