“Women Of The World”

A new exhibit, featuring the works of Angelina Wilson, is set to open in May at the Dolphin Gallery. Wilson is a 17-year old artist from the Mendonoma Coast. She is completing her high school education at the local Charter High School in Point Arena, graduating in June 2023. An opening reception for “Women of the World” is on Friday, May 5, from 5-7 pm, and the exhibit continues through Sunday, May 28, 2023. 

Angelina Wilson found inspiration, not just close to home, but from family as well. As she tells it, “When I was a kid, I thought that painting was only for landscapes, abstracts, or just paintings of historical figures. My grandma was an artist. She did mosaics, and murals. My mom had also been an artist with collages, murals, and sometimes crafts. I have an artistic family, and wanted to join them in creating art.” Consistent with others who’ve discovered their own talent for art (after believing she was never good enough to even try), only recently has Wilson really seen herself as a painter. “I always thought that I was never good enough to even try.” 

For the Dolphin exhibit, she chose to pursue one theme: “Women of the World”. Wilson wants show people how beautiful and inspiring women can be.” She recalls deciding to pursue this theme after seeing a documentary titled “What is a Woman?”. “It really inspired me to answer the question, and to show what real women look like and do in their lives. I will be showing eleven paintings, and all of them are of women from different cultural backgrounds. The medium I have chosen for my artwork will be acrylic paint on canvas. I hope that people come in wanting to see some art, and leave inspired by women’s cultures around the world.”

Spending more time at home was a reality for Wilson in 2020. As she tells it, “when the pandemic hit, I discovered artists painting scenes from anime. In between my online classes I would watch these painting videos, which showed me that I could paint whatever I wanted. It never occurred to me that I could simply paint whatever I wanted, but I was wrong! The first painting I did to restart my love of art was a picture of an anime character I enjoyed. After that, I started to paint my own original characters, and give them their own unique stories. After my initial ‘first’ painting, I started to paint characters from anime, western TV shows, and even video games. Just subjects that made me happy, and that I thought I could challenge myself with.”

Eventually, Wilson began painting portraits of real-world people, and her passion for portraiture began with a painting of the renowned Danish physicist, Neils Bohr. She adds, “My next portrait was of a futuristic painting of Vincent Van Gogh. This painting was more colorful, and lively.  From there, I simply started challenging myself to paint people that I found interesting, and inspiring. But as far as ‘deciding what to paint’ I look for characters, people, or even scenes that challenge me, or let me just enjoy the process of painting.”

This new exhibit will be exciting, and perhaps inspiring, particularly to other young women who have not yet been inspired to start painting. The Dolphin Gallery is at 39140 Highway One, Seacliff Center, Gualala. (707) 884-3896.