Growing up on the wind-blown prairies of North Dakota, Janice Tingum is captivated by movement within the landscape. And in plein air painting, she has found her place. 

Although she was interested in painting as a child, formal art classes were not yet in the curriculum when Tingum attended high school and she had limited artistic tools to use. Instead, her studies took her into the field of law. Even as an attorney, though, she felt drawn to the land and for over two decades her practice has focused on real estate law.

In 2000, an art exhibit by local artists inspired Tingum to begin painting with watercolors. She engaged in an ongoing personal study of art history and methods through reading, visiting museums and art exhibits, as well as attending workshops taught by professional artists.

A workshop taught by Robert Burridge introduced Tingum to acrylic painting and a looser style. While remaining grounded in composition and value, Tingum's artwork began to break free of a linear, left-brain viewpoint and became more exploratory, experimental and fun. Her landscape scenes started to rely less on photographic reference and more on personal observation, memory and imagination.

Tingum's objective is to better see the world around her – to become attuned to the varying shapes, colors, composition, mood, beauty, idiosyncrasies and joy in nature - and to reveal her impressions of the world through painting. Oil paints, she has discovered, allow her to develop rich, loose, textural effects. As she delves into oil painting, she also paints more outdoors. The palette knife is her favorite tool, giving her work a sense of immediacy and movement.

Researching the works of American Impressionists led Tingum to participate in a workshop taught by Camille Przewodek, an outstanding plein air colorist who paints in the tradition of Henry Hensche. Przewodek’s teaching has challenged Tingum to develop a keener vision of the landscape and further explore the use of color in her work.

Tingum views each painting as a journey. She invites you to join her.