art treatise
drawn to nature
Water, land and blooms leave a lasting impression
By Christine R. Gonzalez
CATHERINE Crumpton paints what she is drawn to —
trees, bushes, ocean waves, wooded trails, anything
to do with nature. But she has a special love for
flowers.
“Flowers have always appealed to me,” she says.
“I mean what’s horrible about a flower — nothing.”
It can seem intimidating to paint the complex plants, but she
advises to “just look at the basic shapes, values and color as you
would with any other type of painting, and just let yourself go. For
me, it is my favorite thing to do.”
It is evident that Crumpton gets inspiration from a variety of out-door
Camellia Expectation, 16 x 20 inches, oil on panel. ‐Opposite: Wilmington artist Catherine Crumpton finds inspiration in nature.
36 may 2022
WBM
activities: spending time on the family farm in Roxboro, comb-ing
area beaches, watching sunsets over still waters, and snipping
blossoms to bring natural beauty indoors to capture it on canvas.
Her “blossoms” collection highlights a variety of local favorites,
including peonies, azaleas, dogwood, and even “something like
roses” that is left to the imagination.
She has a special fondness for Camellia Expectation.
“Those are my camellias, actually. I go around and steal things
from peoples yard’s usually, but those were mine,” she says with
a laugh. “And the pewter vase they are in was one of my mother’s
favorite vases.”