Short Hills Artist's Landscapes & Stained Glass Are on Display at Millburn Library Through October 30

MILLBURN, NJ — Emilie Whitley, a talented artist with an interesting background, will be exhibiting her landscape oil paintings and stained-glass pieces at the Millburn Free Public Library through October 30 in the Millburn-Short Hills Art Advisory 22nd Landmarks Art Show -- a colorful storytelling show by Master Artists and curated by Laraine Brennan.

Whitley was born in England and has lived in the United Kingdom, in her mother’s native country of France, Montreal and Toronto. The nature surrounding her various homes has been her muse. She explained, “Art is a great way to stay connected with an old environment and to connect with and embrace a new one.”
Whitley moved to Short Hills with her husband and children in the summer of 2019, just before COVID.

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Whitley continued, “I’ve always been drawn to painting seascapes, oceans, vast skies and open landscapes. My inspiration came from spending childhood summers on the French Island of Île de Ré situated off the West coast of France,” Whitley shared. She added that more recently, she’s painted the rugged coastline of Maine, the open landscapes of rural England — especially Hertfordshire and the East Midlands, the mountains, woodlands and the snowy hills of the Eastern Townships of Quebec and the lovely landscapes she’s discovered in New Jersey.

She’s found a new passion for creating ceramics. “It’s so different from painting because of the physical nature of working with clay, but it overlaps with it, because I like to paint on my glazes as I would on a canvas,” said Whitley. She continued to say, “I'm hand-building animal- and ocean-inspired pieces to a more abstract and free style. ”

Whitley described working in three dimensions as “exhilarating” because the piece comes to life and there are infinite possibilities for the glazes. “I love the element of surprise and the alchemy that’s involved. I feel I have so much to learn. I am always up for a challenge and have worked with fabrics a lot, making abstract landscapes and theater costumes. In a similar vein, I also work in stained-glass," she stated.

Whitley spoke about appreciating the technicality of ceramics, the choice of colors, light streaming through the glass and how stained-glass draws upon the skills of drawing, color theory and the technical skills of cutting and joining.

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Whitley, who was an osteopath in the United Kingdom, talked about enjoying painting in her father’s studio when she was a child. He was an amateur oil painter, and she has vivid sensory memories of “the smell of the paint, the turpentine and the sound of the palette knife mixing the paint on the palette.”

She reported that she studied science and business at school but drawing and painting remained a passion. Whitley took painting classes years after enjoying art as a child. She studied at the Visual Art Centers in Montreal and in Summit, NJ.

Whitley shared, “Art for me has always been a necessary way to unwind and a means to connect with people.” In between creating gorgeous oil paintings, stained-glass and ceramic works, she cares for her four children, chickens and two cats in addition to being an EMT, running, hiking, working out and skiing.

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