Photograph by Kathy De La Torre

If the artist works best when connected to the inner child, artist Nancy DeWeese has the perfect aid in the form of a swing in her studio.

Artist shares her favorite things at Aegis

By Shari Kaplan

When all else fails, swing!

It's not the prescription most people follow to climb over writer's or artist's block or to unwind after a hard day, but it must work for Nancy DeWeese. The Los Gatos artist's collection of watercolors is growing--not just those she makes, but those she exhibits and sells as well.

Many of these are on display through Nov. 21 at Saratoga's Aegis Gallery in the exhibit Landscapes, Naked Ladies, Vegetables and More. And that's just what visitors see--still lifes, nudes and natural scenes are among DeWeese's favorite topics, and she built an exhibit around them.

Nestled at the back of her peaceful, pretty backyard--which belies the fact it's a few blocks from Los Gatos Boulevard--DeWeese's garden studio not only houses the usual bevy of art supplies but also an engaging swing, whose smooth wooden seat promises no splinters and whose sturdy ropes and bolts overhead promise even the heaviest rider a safe trip.

DeWeese says she had it installed on something of a lark, when the studio was being built and she realized how strong and high the ceiling beams were. What DeWeese does not consider a lark is painting and drawing, which she loved as a child and teenager but only returned to within the last six or seven years.

"As young as I can remember, I've loved to draw. There's something to having wanted to do it for so many years and then finally, when you're in your 50s, that you finally do it--it just makes it all the more precious," DeWeese says, reflecting on the busy decades she spent giving top priority to her husband, two daughters, work and travel.




Along the way, she did partake of her other passion, dancing, by teaching it privately. In fact, the Stanford University graduate practically holds a degree in the art, even though her actual major was literature.

"It was really just a cover, because I wanted to major in dance, but they didn't offer it. I took all of Stanford's dance classes, so I sort of minored in it," she says, smiling. Modern dance is her favorite, and she still does it, she adds.

Her daughters are now grown, and her marriage is no longer intact, but that doesn't mean DeWeese has nothing to do. Quite the contrary. She now has time to take art classes, study with professional artists and generally hone her innate skills with good old-fashioned time and practice. She's also joined Aegis Gallery and the Saratoga Community of Painters.

"[Watercolor is] a very alive medium; it continues to move and change even after you put it on the paper," she says. "It's also a complex medium that you never get to the point where you know everything.

"Watercolors are inherently fluid and changing," she continues. "They run, they mix, they turn too dark and dry too light," she adds. "They seem almost to have a life of their own. And with luck, to my surprise and delight, they sometimes allow me to make a painting that pleases me."

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Aegis Gallery is at 14531 Big Basin Way, Unit 2. Regular gallery hours are Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Thursday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

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