Artist relishes variety of painting techniques

Mrs. Reichow and her "Pelican Flower" COURTESY PHOTO For a petite woman, Southwest Florida watercolorist Christine Reichow certainly creates a large volume of work.

She and husband Dick have filled their home with all the furnishings of a thriving operation. Her framed watercolors decorate the walls. On a coffee table rests the 2008 hardcover compilation of watercolorists' works, "Splash #10: Passionate Brushstrokes," which includes a profile of Mrs. Reichow and her "Pelican Flower" piece.

A Signature Member of the National Watercolor Society, Mrs. Reichow paints in a spacious upstairs studio whose large windows offer a gorgeous view of the outdoors that so inspire her. Supplies, spiralbound books of painting notes spanning decades, a display of samples frames and a collection of awards fill the room.

A downstairs room is stocked with cutting boards, a canvas drying rack, mat and frame varieties and framed art pieces. Another room has a computer and 24- and 44-inch printers where Dick completes the giclee reproductions by scanning, enlarging and stitching images. "Sometimes I come in here and watch him," says Mrs. Reichow, 60. "It's just fascinating to see him as he works to line up the pieces to get them together. Eighty to 90 percent of the people want reproductions."

As much as Mrs. Reichow is a master at her craft, Mr. Reichow, 70, is an expert hand in the production. He maintains a list of painting titles and reproductions in each installment of 250 editions per painting. He records dimensions and dates of paintings and knows which clients have the most originals -- 15 of mostly birds and botanicals for a Naples customer. Mrs. Reichow's presence in art shows and galleries and awards received, he knows that too.

The two deliver quality, precision. They radiate pride in the product. "It's turned out to be a much bigger operation than I ever thought it would be," says Mrs. Reichow, every bit the picture of energy and passion. "It's because my husband has done so much to help. It's something I could not do in this volume without him."

Before starting to paint full time in 1998, Mrs. Reichow painted as a textile designer, creating wearable art. She then opened and operated a boutique 10 years in Michigan, where she sold the one-of-a-kind clothing.

Since moving to Southwest Florida in 2000, she has been painting plenty. Birds, botanicals and landscapes are subjects of choice. "I had a father who was a naturalist," she says. "He would take my brother and I for walks and point out the names of the flowers. All year round he was always pointing things out."

"For me, nature is the subject that I love," she says. "Nature is near and dear to my heart."

Mrs. Reichow photographs subjects, then sketches images in pencil on the watercolor surface. To create details, she uses masking to protect the paper from being stained by watercolor when first painting the backgrounds.

Meticulous strokes and vibrant hues prevail in her works, but the seamless background, particularly of rich olive green, is her signature. "I think people like it because it has a peaceful feeling to it," she says.

Mrs. Reichow says it took a long time to perfect the washed background. "I keep notes about how I create the background, how I created this color in the background, if I discovered anything, a little breakthrough," she says. "I'm just always trying to find a better way, more effective and more thought-out, so it troubleshoots problems in the future."

She says she relishes the variety of technique in painting subjects. For instance, she pours paint when creating landscapes. She has a bathtub to collect the runoff after she's poured cupfuls of color to produce the background. She may pour a second time before using a brush to insert details. "After it's poured, I'll go back in and darker certain areas and then give shapes," she says.

Among the venues displaying her work are Wild Child Art Gallery on Pine Island, Vicky Glynn Gallery and Frame in Punta Gorda and Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in Naples, where she has an exhibit this month and December. Other paintings are in private and corporate collections.

Mrs. Reichow says they average about 16 art shows a year. "I feel it's valuable to do competition and try to take my work to the next level because then for anybody who purchases something, it can make it more valuable if I can keep winning and accomplishing more with my art," she says. "So I do both. I sell, but I also compete."

Her online site, www.christinereichow. com, features a gallery of 218 paintings done since 2001, Mr. Reichow says.