Gwendolyn Healey
Inside Gwendolyn's Studio
Interview with Gwendolyn Healey - "...it's really the only way for me to portray human emotions."
SP: How did you become interested in art?
GH: My grandmother and mother are both painters and my father is a sculptor, so it was only natural that I would be.
SP: How would you describe your work to someone who has never seen it before?
GH: Pop Surrealism
SP: Why do you think you are compelled to paint portraits?
GH: I feel it's really the only way for me to portray human emotions.
SP: How do you maintain momentum in your art practice?
GH: It's just what I love to do. I make time for it, even if I have to get up at 5am to paint before I go to work. You make sacrifices for what you love.
SP: Are there subjects you prefer to paint?
GH: If by subjects you mean people: I love to paint people with lots of expression, it doesn't matter who they are. If you mean a topic: Any type of emotional struggle works for me.
SP: Was your experience on Star Portraits different from what you thought it was going to be?
GH: Yes, I didn't think I would have such a difficult inner struggle with what I thought was expected or wanted from the producers, the star, and my regular practice for creating a piece. In the end I just tried to please myself and not worry about what everyone else would have wanted even if that meant my piece would be less likely to be picked.
SP: Where do you see yourself and your art in the future?
GH: I picture myself having a studio in Miami and collaborating on paintings and design projects with my husband, Sean D'Andrade.
Gwendolyn's portrait of Jim Cuddy
Artist Stats
Gwendolyn Healey uses popular culture and iconic imagery intuitively to create a “pop surreal” narrative on the human experience through her acrylic paintings. Her hope is to leave the viewer with a psychological charge that expands on their curiosity of life in general. Gwendolyn studied at Champlain Region College in their Fine Arts Program and at the Ontario College of Art and Design in their Communication and Design Program.
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