About
Originally from Michigan, Bethany Widom grew up around industrious people. Learning to bake and sew at a young age, sparked her creative side. She used frosting to paint, sculpt, and decorate cakes. By age sixteen, she was happily rearranging patterns and manipulating fabric to come up with her own fashion creations.
After moving to Leesburg, she discovered painting classes at Loudoun Academy of Arts. Drawn to the luminous work of the Old Dutch Masters, she studied under Michael Davis for several years, learning techniques used by Rembrandt, Jean Baptiste Chardin, and Pieter Claesz.
She is intrigued by the glimpse into someone's everyday life, illustrated in Old World paintings, and the subject matter of her own still life paintings reflect that intrigue. However, unlike many artist who seek to emulate the old masters, Bethany turns to a more recent past for her subject matter: objects that were a part of her own life and that of her family, things well-used and well-loved. Sometimes, she is also inspired to paint modern things, like her son's origami, or her daughter's nail polish bottles. Reminisce as you view nostalgic still life oil paintings.