Painting in the Moment

Vivian Ripley of the Central Ohio Branch is an accomplished artist of varied subject matter‭, ‬and inherent in all her works is the beauty of color and how it is affected by light and shade‭. ‬She works in pastel‭, ‬watercolor‭, ‬acrylic‭, ‬and colored pencil‭ (‬sometimes combining media‭), ‬always striving to achieve beauty in each medium through her emotional use of color and tone‭.‬

Ripley grew up with an intense interest in the arts. After earning an advanced degree in piano performance, she added a serious involvement in the visual arts. She has been professionally active in group and individual shows since 1975. 

Teaching has inspired her to examine her own works, continually strive to grow in her achievement, verbalize and demonstrate those findings to others — and hopefully inspire them as well. Ripley regularly teaches pastel, watercolor, acrylic, and colored pencil, and is also in demand for demonstrations and workshops in these disciplines.

She finds motivation from new ideas and new subjects. Of particular interest is painting on location. The excitement and involvement with the moment is particularly rewarding. 

“The whole body, and its senses, is involved with nature because of the urgency of the increasingly changing scene,” Ripley says. 

Some of her most emotional work is done on location. A favorite area is Ontario, north of Georgian Bay. Since 1982, Ripley has been involved every summer with the La Cloche Art Show in Whitefish Falls, Ontario, where she has won awards, served as juror, and been named distinguished artist.

In addition to being a longtime member of NLAPW’s Central Ohio Branch, Ripley is a signature member of several watercolor societies and other artists organizations.  She has won awards in state, regional, and national shows, and has been an artist-in-residence at two national parks.

Ripley’s special watercolor technique is spotlighted in a chapter in “The Watercolor Landscape Techniques of 23 International Artists” (International Artists Incorporated, 2003). She is one of only six artists from the United States included in this popular book.