Local painter Brenda Horner has some arresting pieces on display at the Mount Nittany Medical Center.
You can’t simply walk by these paintings without stopping to take a closer look.
Nature lovers in particular will find this show enchanting. Horner takes a close look at plants and birds and reproduces them in amazingly detailed watercolor.
“I paint from photos,” she said. “Sometimes I find photos on line and sometimes I’ll take them myself.”
The work she’s chosen takes the viewer on a little walk through the seasons, incorporating pumpkins and fall leaves, moving into snowy scenes, then melting into fresh blossoms and, finally, sun-drenched flowers.
“I’ll take a butterfly or a bird and create a scene around it,” Horner said.
She paints flowers, leaves, feathers and beaks using a precision normally seen in field guides. Her cardinals, blue jays and chickadees boast colors and textures of perfect accuracy. Other pieces include flowers such as sunflowers, hydrangea, Queen Anne’s lace, lilac and trillium, again including tiny details in each. Each stamen, petal and leaf bears a sharpness that demonstrates Horner’s mastery.
Surprisingly, Horner has little formal training.
“The realism has to do with being self-taught,” she said, “I did take a handful of classes, but mainly I learned on my own.”
Horner’s independent learning extended to calligraphy, which also appears in a number of pieces in this show.
“Years ago, my husband bought me a pen set,” she recalled, “and I just sat down with it. Then there was a calligrapher on PBS and I learned from watching him.”
A selection of quotes highlight several of the paintings, giving the entire display a sensitive, thoughtful feel. And Horner hopes that mood will affect those viewing her work.
“I hope it has a calming sense,” she said. “I hope people can look at these paintings and appreciate nature and become more quiet and restful.”
