Watercolor Illustrations by Wendy MacNaughton

Wendy MacNaughton has one of those art portfolios that take you to another time and place. Suddenly you find yourself sitting in a strange subway, surrounded by strangers, asking yourself what their interesting stories might be. Her ink and watercolor drawings bring out their unique and mysterious personalities or as she says, their “quirks” and “anxieties,” yet above all she wants you to feel their isolation “despite their proximity to others.”

Wonderfully relevant yet also completely timeless, her illustrations carry with them an emotional heaviness that’s seen both in the expressions of her subjects and in the few words that accompany certain pieces. Beautiful and sometimes tragic, they’ll make you remember moments long forgotten or regrets that you tried to bury long ago.

Wendy received her BFA from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena in 1999, and her Masters in International Social Welfare from Columbia University in 2005. She has spoken at universities and museums on visual communications and the intersection of art, design, and social work. Her art has been featured in numerous publications, and she has been profiled in academic publications and textbooks.

Wendy MacNaughton