Landscape Painter Molly Doe Wensberg

Interpreting the lazy hills of New Hampshire with layers of color

"Where To?" 30×48, 2018, $4,000

The sun doesn’t always shine in the landscape paintings of Molly Doe Wensberg of Strafford, and rarely does she attempt to capture the bright colors of autumn. “I just prefer the muted colors of a hazy day,” she says, adding, “I find them more soothing — full-on autumn is too overpowering for me.”

Wensberg’s first art enterprise after graduating from Skidmore College was helping a production tapestry artist and learning to build colors with 20 strands of yarn. Now, with a palette knife, she layers in the colors, almost like a hand weaver would fill weft sections with yarn, woven between the fibers of the warp.

For inspiration, Wensberg loves to drive around the state, and she particularly admires the views in Gilmanton, where the fields and sky meet in an almost-quillwork pattern. She translates the views she captures in photos, or from her mind’s eye, with luscious oil paint. The palette knife forces her to abstract a bit and not get too fussy. She builds up the layers of colors, adding depth and interest, and maybe a bit of the burnt orange underpainting shows through here and there as a visual treat.

Wensberg’s work can be found at McGowan Fine Art in Concord and the George Marshall Store Gallery in York, Maine. Prices range for $2,000 to $5,500.