Adam Wever-Glen hasn’t been painting for long, however, he is creating a bit of a stir. His large “mugshot” style portraits are painted realistically, but offer nearly as much personality as you receive when meeting someone face-to-face. I found Adam’s art hanging at District 30 a few months ago and immediately was drawn in to the story behind the eyes of each portrait. Truthful and delicately created, Adam has an absolute talent for capturing the charm and individuality of those who inspire him.
Art is not new to Adam – he has been drawing for quite some time. He decided that it was time to fully dedicate himself to his passion three years ago, and became a full-time artist. He took out a school loan and then signed up for only two classes. Every day, he would wake up, drop off his son at school and then paint from 9-5 as if it were his job. “Trying to turn (art) into a job… when I look ahead in my future, the only thing I see myself doing is this…it does feel good that I know I am going to do it whether I fail or not”
Each portrait tells a story so well that his subjects become very familiar to the viewer. It is obvious that Adam is a natural when it comes to capturing the soul of his subject. One in particular is a portrait of a man dressed in a plain blue shirt, his mouth slightly parted as if he has been caught between thoughts. Adam described him as “…very generous, super honest and sincere” The portrait captured those words perfectly with an abundance of depth behind the eyes.
Adam seems a bit reserved, but he did light up when I pulled out the painting (of what turned out to be his grandmother) and claimed it as my favorite. Her expression is priceless, holding a cheerful grin and kind eyes. Finding out that it was a portrait of his grandmother made perfect sense, each brush stroke felt as if it danced across the page with love. The story that came along with her smiling face only made me fall more in love with her. Her husband died in her arms at the young age of 39. The stress of losing her love caused all of her hair to fall out and it never grew back. She painted her eyebrows back on and carried on. The portrait captures the spirit of her strength, while smiling in a way that only a grandmother is capable of.
One if the first places he displayed his work was at Naked Lounge Coffee Shop. More displays have grown from there, hanging at such places as the Tim Collom Gallery and participating with the RAW Artist Showcase. Currently, he has two portraits hanging at FTC Skateshop – one of them being local legend John Cardiel. During the first week of his work being shown at FTC, a Nike rep came in and made an offer on one of the paintings. Adam has always found a ton of support within the skateboarding community.
Inspiration comes from many places, including music, and even his mom. He states, “…artistically I like Lucian Freud…” The inspiration is rather noticeable, however, Adam’s portraits seem more honest than Freuds, “.. I guess I just want people to see it (his artwork) and then, I don’t know, just feel something in themselves… look at these people and feel, like, connected to everybody else.”
Adam is an artist to keep your eyes on. Not only is he extremely talented, he is a very genuine person. He has great ambitions, intuitions and is level-headed enough to have great success. If he ever asks you if he can paint your portrait, make sure to say yes! You may learn a little about yourself by viewing your face through his eyes.
Photos Melissa Uroff
To learn more about Adam Wever Glenn visit http://Adamwever-glen.tumblr.com/