wendy sharpe

Wendy Sharpe is a Canadian contemporary landscape painter living and working in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

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Losing her mother in her twenties shaped both her approach and her decision to make buildings the subject of her landscapes. Deeply mired in grief and unable to emotionally connect with others, she chose instead to seek refuge in quiet alleys of downtown Saskatoon, spending hours there, searching for a connection between mind and heart. These spaces were a respite from the darkness that threatened to envelop her.

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In her early paintings, she pays homage to those alleys, and her work reflected her pain: stark, monochromatic reproductions of the physical spaces that mirrored her own reality. These early pieces lacked joy, and are devoid of colour.

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Over time, as Wendy healed through grief, her landscapes transformed. They are now fully saturated, brilliant, luminous scenes capturing alleys, street fronts, and rural buildings, often blending her original grisaille style with luminous colour.

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Through her contemporary landscapes, Wendy shares the story of a feeling about a place, through colour. When she paints, she wonders what it was like to care for the spaces she depicts: to repair the roof, weed the flower bed, touch up the trim, or replace a window. Small actions carried out over time to keep the building alive. Collectively, these actions are the inhalations and exhalations of life.

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Her artistic approach continues to be refined through her friendship with Canadian visual artist Marie Lannoo, a relationship that began with the Canadian Artists' Representation (CARFAC) Saskatchewan Mentorship Program (2017–2018) and remains central to her growth as a visual artist.

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Wendy was selected as one of five inaugural artists for the City of Saskatoon’s Artists in Place: The Bunkhouse Project (2019).