Wendi Schneider (born 1955) is an American artist and photographer based in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Colorado, known for her photographs of

nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physics, physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomenon, phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. ...

and

wildlife Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animal species (biology), species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous ...

that are often printed on paper vellum or kozo with hand-applied layers of

gold leaf Gold leaf is gold that has been hammered into thin sheets (usually around 0.1 µm thick) by goldbeating and is often used for gilding. Gold leaf is available in a wide variety of karats and shades. The most commonly used gold is 22-kara ...

on verso.

Gilded Gilding is a decorative technique for applying a very thin coating of gold over solid surfaces such as metal (most common), wood, porcelain, or stone. A gilded object is also described as "gilt". Where metal is gilded, the metal below was tradi ...

vellum Vellum is prepared animal skin or membrane, typically used as writing material. Parchment is another term for this material, from which vellum is sometimes distinguished, when it is made from calfskin, as opposed to that made from other anima ...

and kozo photographs from her ongoing "States of Grace" series have been exhibited in more than 100 gallery and museum exhibitions nationally and abroad. Paula Tognarelli, executive director of the Griffin Museum of Photography, has stated: "There is an elegance that emanates from Wendi Schneider's photographs. It can be seen in the turn of a flamingo's neck, in hanging fog or the flick of a

betta fish ''Betta'' is a large genus of small, active, often colorful, freshwater ray-finned fishes, in the gourami family (Osphronemidae). The best known ''Betta'' species is ''B. splendens,'' commonly known as the Siamese fighting fish and often kept ...

tail. Schneider's photographic gestures are not rare sightings but daily gifts from the

natural world ''Natural World'' is a strand of British wildlife documentary programmes broadcast on BBC Two and BBC Two HD and regarded by the BBC as its flagship natural history series. It is the longest-running documentary in its genre on British televisi ...

for those with the patience to see them."

Life and early career

Born in Memphis, TN in 1955, Schneider attended

Stephens College Stephens College is a private women's college in Columbia, Missouri. It is the second-oldest women's educational establishment that is still a women's college in the United States. It was founded on August 24, 1833, as the Columbia Female Acade ...

in Columbia, Missouri where she studied

Art History Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

, before moving on to

Newcomb College H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College, or Newcomb College, was the coordinate women's college of Tulane University located in New Orleans, in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It was founded by Josephine Louise Newcomb in 1886 in memory of her daughter. ...

in 1975 to study

Studio Art An art school is an educational institution with a primary focus on the visual arts, including fine art – especially illustration, painting, photography, sculpture, and graphic design. Art schools can offer elementary, secondary, post-seco ...

. Painting was her chosen medium at this time, and her first use of a camera was to make reference photographs of painting subjects. When she shifted her artistic focus to

photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed ...

, she sought to integrate her painting background by layering paints and glazes on her photographic prints to "create a more personal impression." After college, she remained in New Orleans and worked for '' The Times-Picayune'', where she photographed, designed, and produced the award-winning 1987 edition of The Picayune's Creole Cook Book. The following year, Schneider moved to New York City, where she photographed for Victoria Magazine while continuing her fine art photography work During this time, her work often appeared on book covers for authors such as

Louisa May Alcott Louisa May Alcott (; November 29, 1832March 6, 1888) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet best known as the author of the novel ''Little Women'' (1868) and its sequels ''Little Men'' (1871) and ''Jo's Boys'' (1886). Raised in ...

Anne Rice Anne Rice (born Howard Allen Frances O'Brien; October 4, 1941 – December 11, 2021) was an American author of gothic fiction, erotic literature, and Christian literature. She was best known for her series of novels ''The Vampire Chronicles''. B ...

Tami Hoag Tami Hoag (born Tami Mikkelson; January 20, 1959) is an American novelist, best known for her work in the romance and thriller genres. More than 22 million copies of her books are in print. Biography Hoag was born in Cresco, Iowa and raised in t ...

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, Jodi Thomas and more. In 1991, she exhibited a collection of hand-painted photographs titled ''Mille Fleur'' at A Gallery for Fine Photography in New Orleans, which continues to represent her work. In 1994, she left New York for Denver, where she still lives today, and later put her fine art practice on hold while she raised her son and worked in commissioned photography,

art direction Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and unify the visi ...

, and

design A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design'' ...

Fine art photography

In 2010, Schneider was inspired to return her fine art roots; a return visit to A Gallery for Fine Photography in New Orleans cemented the desire to revive her fine art photography practice. Soon after, she began work on her ongoing ''States of Grace'' series, and its three attendant sub-series – ''Flora, Fauna'', and ''Figura'' – which illustrate Schneider's "affinity for wildlife and the natural world". Schneider is known for the

gilding Gilding is a decorative technique for applying a very thin coating of gold over solid surfaces such as metal (most common), wood, porcelain, or stone. A gilded object is also described as "gilt". Where metal is gilded, the metal below was tradi ...

effect she uses in this series, wherein "images are captured, layered and printed digitally with archival pigment ink on paper vellum or kozo, and white gold, 24k gold or silver leaf is then hand-applied to the back of the print, creating a silken sheen on the print's surface." ''States of Grace'' has traveled worldwide. Schneider Evenings with the Moon

Wendi-schneider-pc-memento-mori-gilded-vellum

Schneider's most recent series, ''Evenings with the Moon'' "engages the moon as muse." Images in this series are printed on paper vellum or Japanese kozo paper and gilded with gold leaf. As of January 2020 ''Evenings with the Moon'' has been shown at the Southeast Center for Photography in Greenville, SC; and The Gallery at Mr. Pool in Boulder, CO. Schneider has been selected as a Finalist for Photolucida's international juried exhibition Critical Mass in 2017, 2018, and 2020. She has taught workshops at the Southeast Center for Photography and A Smith Gallery.

Awards

* 2014: ''Black & White Magazine'', Best Single Image, Animals * 2016: International Color Awards, 2nd Place, Merit of Excellence Wildlife * 2016: San Diego Natural History Museum Best of Nature, First place * 2016: 9th Annual Julia Margaret Cameron Awards, Single Image, Nude/Figure * 2017: Neutral Density Photography Awards, Honorable Mention * 2017: Florida Museum of Photographic Arts, International Exhibit, Third place, Nature, Science, and Animals * 2017: Animalia, Director's Selection, The

Center for Fine Art Photography The Center for Fine Art Photography is a non-profit exhibition and education space located in Fort Collins, Colorado, United States. The Center was founded in 2004 and features rotating exhibitions of fine art photography by artists from around th ...

* 2017: Gala Awards, First place, Urban & Rural Landscape * 2018: National Association of Women Artists, Silver, Small Works, Works on Paper * 2018: American Photography 34 * 2018: Moscow International Photo Awards, Bronze, Nature * 2018: Prix de la Photographie, Paris (Px3), Bronze, Fine Art, Landscape * 2019: San Francisco Bay Month of Photography, Gold * 2020: Px3, Nature/Trees, Gold

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schneider, Wendi 1955 births Living people H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College alumni American women photographers 21st-century American women