by Jill Stefani Wagner

“The New Jersey Home” pastel painting   11 inches x 14 inches    SOLD I was lucky to have quite a few commissions during the last couple months of 2018. They came in so hot and heavy that I didn’t remember to photograph them all. I’ve posted 3 that I did shoot before they left the studio.   Commissions are interesting conundrums. When I agree to take on these assignments, I have to be aware that although the people who come to me undoubtedly like my art work, they want me to create THEIR art work.  Their subject matter, their size, their medium, their [...]

  Earlier this year I felt like I was in a real painting slump. All my ideas seemed boring for some reason, and I just couldn’t get excited about getting back into my studio. Instead of doing absolutely nothing, I decided to get busy toning canvases just in case the muses returned to me sometime in the future. And, as often happens, just the act of doing SOMETHING lead to a little excitement.   I found three 9″ x 9″ gallery-wrapped canvases that were very deep at 2.5 “. I have no idea where they came from. (Could it be the muses?) They seemed [...]

“Sun Drenched” plein air oil painting    8 inches x 10 inches    See Pricing Some of the pieces I painted in the fall after the national festivals were over, but when the colors were still beautiful outside…   “The Neighbor’s Shed” plein air oil painting   8 inches x 10 inches      See Pricing “Behind the Old Place” plein air oil painting   9 inches x 12 inches    See Pricing ___________________________________________________________________This artwork was created on: Linen PanelMedium: Sennelier, Gamblin, Utrecht and Richeson Oil Paints   [...]

I’m so pleased to be invited Pastel Faculty at this year’s Plein Air Convention (PACE). I absolutely loved teaching at PACE 2016 and 2017. I had wanted to attend the convention for years, but something always got in the way. It wasn’t til they asked me to teach at PACE 2016 that I got a chance to experience it.   It was AMAZING. 900 students and 6o faculty learning to paint outdoors in a supportive, no-drama atmosphere.   Marketing Bootcamp with Eric Rhoads early every morning, then Home Room with tons of door prizes. Four days of  demos by my favorite artists in 3 or [...]

Plein Air Architecture Painting    8 inches x 10 inches    SOLD  There’s a beautiful old pink Victorian house on one of the side streets of my home town. Every time I drive by I say “Dang, I gotta paint that place.” Finally one late summer Saturday morning I did.   While I was painting a really nice woman, the owner of the house, came out to talk to me. She loves her home and was so proud that I thought it was beautiful enough to paint. She made me promise I would show her the finished painting by email. When she saw it, [...]

“Waiting” Interior oil painting    12 inches x 24 inches    SOLD Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to be painting the interiors of bars and restaurants. It was simply not one of my goals… or even in my wildest dreams. But extreme frustration can drive an artist to outlandish lengths.   I’ve always loved painting landscapes. Capturing the colors, shapes and light of the beautiful land around me gave me joy. But, ironically, when I first started painting en plein air outdoors and saw what those scenes REALLY looked like, I couldn’t paint them from photographs anymore. I missed all of [...]