Spring Live Wedding Painting in Denver, NC

This Spring, I had the opportunity to do my very first live wedding painting. When Camille and Haison reached out to me months before their wedding, it was an immediate YES from my side! As an Artist, I always wanted to paint outside the setting of my studio, preferably plein air. And painting live at an event while entertaining guests as they watch my process, seemed even more fascinating to my extrovert people pleasing personality.

The venue that the couple picked, DuGaren Venues & Vineyards in Denver, NC was stunning and picturesque with lush greenery peeking throughout the property. Although it was early Spring in the month of March, and the vineyard was still a bit bare, there was ample greenery in the trees surrounding the property.

Incorporating lush greenery in an early Spring Live Wedding Painting

Months before the wedding, I made sure to capture all the details that the couple wanted in their painting. I set up a call with the bride to discuss their visions, and they had very precise and simple taste in their aesthetics, which I loved! They wanted an impressionistic style of painting without any facial details in the people. They only wanted a portrait of the bride and groom in front of the ceremony arch overlooking the lush greenery from the backdrop in the trees and vineyard. For the pose, they wanted a dip kiss with the bride holding her bouquet in front of the arch during the ceremony recessional.

As mentioned above, since this was an early Spring wedding, and the vineyards were still bare, I did a bit of research of the venue during summer time to get an idea of the vineyard in its full peak greenery. Once I was able to picture the backdrop perfectly as described by the bride and the venue photos, I was confident to incorporate into them the painting, which otherwise would not have been possible had I not done my scouting beforehand.

Showstopper of the Wedding scene

During the wedding, my assistant and I reached the venue couple hours before the ceremony to setup and paint the backdrop. The venue was no surprise, as I had already seen pictures and images from my research. But the ceremony arch was breathtaking, and I had to stop several times during my painting process just to admire the beauty. It was adorned with gorgeous purple and white florals and greenery, and soft purple linen floating slightly in the wind from the arch. Without any doubt, the arch became my favorite object to paint in the entire wedding scene. The floral arrangement in the arch was the same theme throughout the wedding and was in the bride’s bouquet as well, which I loved painting too.

Challenges of a windy Spring day

It was a very windy day for an outdoor painting session, which posed as a bit of a challenge. But, all the extra reinforcement that I made sure to bring with me were able to tame the wind issue as much as possible. I finished painting the backdrop right before the ceremony began. And right after the ceremony, during the bride and groom’s pose, I captured a photo that I could refer to while painting. However, the photo did not turn out as expected, and I had to ask the couple to pose one more time for me at a separate spot, which they graciously and happily accepted.

Entertaining the Guests, one of my favorite parts of the day

Next, I moved my painting station indoors in the reception area where the guests slowly started gathering as well. I had to readjust the painting and piece together the bride and groom’s pose from the other spot in the photo that I took to the actual scene I painted. I made sure to get all the proportions right and continued with the painting throughout the reception for the rest of the night. Guests stopped by to admire the evolving artwork, and expressed awe and curiosity as they watched it come to life one brushstroke at a time.

The BIG reveal and wrap-up

At the end of the night, with 90% completion of the painting, I revealed it to the bride and groom. Their reaction of how their special moment was captured into a piece of art was such a fun moment to experience.

For my studio hours, I made sure to capture all the details and touch ups that needed to be incorporated into the painting to turn it into a keepsake that they deserved to cherish for a lifetime.

Camille and Haison’s wedding was a perfect example that depicts my goals to serve others in capturing their special moments, their emotions and the atmosphere of the moment, and then turning them into an heirloom piece of art.

If you are looking for a live wedding painter to capture your special day in a unique way, feel free to check out my Live Wedding Painting page and email me at poojaroystudio@gmail.com to get the discussion started!