Grandchildren of Elena Willets
Artist of the Month, Elena Willets
SaddleBrooke Fine Arts Guild’s Artist of the Month is Elena Willets. A SaddleBrooke resident since 2003, Willets has been studying art since early childhood. Since her father was an artist, her parents encouraged her to draw and paint in whatever medium she wanted to explore. Willets says, “I had an early interest in drawing and painting animals and people, but I tried a lot of different approaches and different subject matter to feel confident and well-rounded as an artist. I’m so pleased that life has brought me back around to my first loves!”
After a career in commercial art, Willets moved to Estes Park, Colorado, in 1984 where she began painting full time. Over the next 30 years she explored different media and studied privately with several noted painters such as R.S. Riddick, Phil Stark and Matt Smith. As much as she loved the spontaneity of Plein Air painting, she was still drawn to the figurative. Using her own horses, dogs and cats and (later) grandchildren as models, she returned to what she really enjoys and has an affinity for — portraiture. That has blossomed into currently pursuing portraiture full time.
As Willets expresses it, “I believe it is possible for the artist to go beyond the photograph, to capture the heart and soul. That is what I strive for!”
See more of her work at www.elenawillets.com.