Nan Henke

“STOP THE TRUCK!”
These are words that I often say while driving on the family ranch with my father-in-law.  He is very understanding about stopping for a wildflower, an animal (wild or domestic) or even an interesting rock.  Once I have shot photos from every imaginable angle that might be useful in a future painting, we resume our ranch task

MY PAINTING PROCESS
I paint from the photographs that I have taken but I am not aiming for photorealism.  Instead, I study the photo and decide what the key elements are that I want to play up in my painting.  Everything else can be eliminated or vaguely abstract.  Often I play with the photo on the computer, making it black and white, changing the contrast and applying other software features that help me to see things that I might not have noticed.  Then I return to the original photo with new vision. 
I work in watercolor and acrylic paints because I love the choice that water media gives: colors that are either hard edged or flowing together.  I usually start with a sketch in watercolor pencil (so that it will melt into the painting and disappear) then paint the background, saving the much-loved fussy details of the foreground for last.  I enjoy having people watch over my shoulder while I paint, especially if they ask questions.  I also enjoy helping people who don’t think of themselves as artists to create a beautiful small watercolor painting from a favorite photo. 

THE SYMBOL NEXT TO MY SIGNATURE:
I live in Boerne now, but the Henkes have been Fredericksburg ranchers for more than 100 years.   I "brand" all of my paintings with a tiny Rocking O, our cattle brand. That is the only use that the image gets these days, as the cattle get ear tagged instead.