Ann Rea

This month we chat with artist Ann Rea. Renowned for her unique, interpretive approach to landscape painting, Ann has established a national following and a growing cadre of patrons who appreciate the vibrancy and grandeur that she displays in her work.

LuxeSF: How did you become an artist?

Rea: I went to art school and then worked in design for a short period of time. It wasn’t long after that that I abandoned art and design all together.

LuxeSF: Where did you go to art school?

Rea: I attended the Cleveland Institute of Art, one of the oldest art schools in the country, established in 1882, and studied under Viktor Schreckengost. Not too long after that, I abandoned my creative career and decided I needed to be more practical. I worked in a variety of different industries, from high tech, to disaster relief for the Federal government, to becoming a development director. For more than seven years I didn’t paint or draw anything. During that time I developed serious chronic anxiety. I returned to painting as hopefully a means to alleviate that anxiety, with no intention of showing or selling my work. Not long after that, I met Wayne Thiebaud, an American art icon, on par with the likes of Andy Warhol and Robert Rauschenberg. When I met Wayne, he suggested that I quit my day job and paint full time.

LuxeSF: And for how long have you been painting professionally?

Rea: In December, 2004, I sold my house, I quit my job, and I moved to the beach in San Francisco; and that’s when I started my business.

LuxeSF: What subject matters, if any, do you specialize in?

Rea: I’m known for painting vineyards, but that’s really not my subject. My subject is color that is created and shaped by ambient light. In other words, I paint in the tradition of the French Impressionists and I’m influenced by my contemporary mentors.

LuxeSF: Why have you developed a reputation for painting vineyards?

Rea: When I quit my job and I sold my house, unlike many artists I wrote a business plan and a marketing plan. Early on in my career, I realized that many of the paintings that sold were paintings of a friend’s vineyard. I used to paint at the vineyard of renowned viticulturist Dr. Harold Olmo, and I noticed that those pieces were selling well. I also noticed, as anyone who has been to an art reception will attest, that art tends to sell when people are drinking and socializing, and that people tend to buy art when they’re on vacation. As you now, vacation visitors to the Bay Area inevitably head to wine country. And so, I combined all those elements to create my business.

LuxeSF: What wineries or vineyards have you been commissioned by or done work for?

Rea: Most recently, Tim Mondavi’s Continuum Estate. That was not commissioned by Tim himself but from avid and wine collectors in Naples, Florida. I’ve also painted Silver Oak Cellars, Markham, Wente Family Estate, and several private vineyards. I don’t do much work for corporate clients. I actually do less and less of that.

LuxeSF: You have a distinctive style and creative process. How do you describe that?

Rea: I would say that my approach comes from the blending of an old tradition and a new tradition…old tradition being that of the French Impressionists, and the new tradition reminiscent of Wayne Thiebaud and Gregory Kondos, a colleague of Thiebaud’s with whom I studied in France. Stylistically, I can say that painting, like any art, is about emotion. It’s not a left-brain logical process. When I ask people how my work makes them feel, the most common response is that my work makes people feel calm, happy and serene.

LuxeSF: There’s also a particular vividness in your use of color.

Rea: I think that’s coming from the fact that these pieces are inspired by and created in natural sunlight. I’m actually standing in the vineyard to create these pieces. That’s the light I’m drawing from. I’m not looking at a photograph. I’m not in my studio. I’m capturing the actual colors around me in the natural environment that are being created by the sunlight and the atmosphere of that particular place at that particular time.

LuxeSF: What other subject matters do you work with?

Rea: Occasionally I’m commissioned to paint people’s private gardens or landscapes. This month I’ll be headed up to Healdsburg to paint the Russian River, which borders the ranch of patrons of mine. I was flown to Toronto to paint the private garden belonging to Bob Proctor, the well-known personal development guru.

LuxeSF: Assignments that thrill you most?

Rea: The assignments that thrill me most are those where the collector says, “Surprise me,” and who understands that I’m not an illustrator or functioning like a photographer, they are interested in my creative my artist process and trust that I won’t disappoint them.

LuxeSF: They want your interpretive viewpoint…

Rea: Exactly. And they understand that that’s not all they’re going to get. I’ve just crafted a new program where I don’t just accept a commission to paint a vineyard or a landscape. What I’m doing now is actually creating an entire experience where the collector walks the vineyard with me and with the winemaker. We walk through the landscape that I’m going to paint, and they have that experience of meeting me, meeting the winemaker, and really gaining a personal connection with the landscape. Then I return to the vineyard and I set up my easel, and I create the series right there in the vineyard. What’s very unique is I’m actually maintaining a dedicated online diary, so that the patron or collector can watch the evolution of their series remotely online. The collectors absolutely love it because they get to have a very unique, once-in-a-lifetime and very personal experience. This is different from buying a painting off of an art gallery’s wall where you’ll probably never meet the artist and you won’t be involved in the creative process.

LuxeSF: In terms of just trends in art acquisition and art commissions, what are you noticing among the art patrons you deal with?

Rea: People want to have an experience. They want to have an understanding of the process and motivation behind the work. They want meaning and a memory. They want to meet the artist. They want to feel a connection to the art that’s on their wall, beyond it being a graphic piece that they’re attracted to. What’s been really wonderful about the internet is it’s been a great leveler for artists like me. What I am noticing is that musicians have really blazed this trail when it comes to developing a platform and reaching their fans through the internet. They’ve actually discontinued their contracts with major labels, launched their own labels and are reaching a broader audience and making more money as a result. That’s how I’ve shaped my business. I’m reaching collectors on the internet. It’s amazing to me that original oil paintings sell so well online.

LuxeSF: What’s your price range?

Rea: From $5 to $36,000 and everything in-between. I offer a note card for $5, and reproductions up to $600 and more. With my original oils, the very smallest 5”x7” framed study is $600, and it goes as high as $36,000, and again with everything in-between.

LuxeSF: Let’s assume for a moment that I’m the proud possessor of something beautiful, a home, a winery, a new yacht and I want to immortalize it in some way partnering with an interpretive artist like you. Your advice would you give me?

Rea: Once I had an instance where a collector wanted his vineyard in Napa painted. He said, “I’m having an important wedding anniversary. I would like you to secretly paint our vineyard for my wife’s anniversary gift.”  I toured the vineyard with him and his son, and secretly went back and created a special piece. He wrote me a note that said, “Thank you for helping save my marriage.”  I do things like that. It’s really quite personal. And it’s quite simple. If I can’t do it, or if I don’t think I’m going to be able to do it justice, I won’t do it.

LuxeSF: What new developments in your career are on the horizon?

Rea: What I’m most excited about is this new everlasting experience of art and wine where you actually get to walk through the vineyard with me and the winemaker and watch the series unfold. This is groundbreaking, and it’s really fascinating for people to watch the creative process unfold and watch their painting come to life, to see video clips from the vineyards where I’m painting. I’m also excited about my new art and wine pairing program with Christopher Sawyer, the sommelier and Wine Country personality. We’re working with the Rosewood Resort in Menlo Park. I’m planning my first art gallery in Wine Country and looking forward to the publication of the first of my book series, “Colors of Terroir”, an artist’s tour of Sonoma. It’s going to be a busy, but exciting year.

Visit www.annrea.com