Today we’d like to introduce you to Craig Wright.
Hi Craig, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I started watercolor painting the beginning of 2020 as a hobby; just something to do to keep myself busy. At the same time COVID hit and like many others, I found myself stuck in the house for days, sometimes weeks on end with way too much time on my hands. Painting watercolors filled the void.
After that first year I joined a couple local art societies and had a lot of fun hanging out with people of like mind and participating in exhibitions. I decided to up my game and in 2021, I joined the Virginia Watercolor Society (VWS) to compete with watercolor artists from all across Virginia. I was fortunate enough to be accepted and have been juried into to every VWS annual exhibition since. Competing at the national level was the logical next step in my journey. I applied and was accepted into my first national competition with the Georgia Watercolor Society (GWS) in 2024, as well as in 2025 and 2026.
Along the way I began receiving requests to purchase my watercolors, which is the ultimate compliment any artist can receive. So I launched a website, purchased a nice giclee printer, and opened an Etsy Shop where I sell many of my original watercolors and giclee prints online. Most recently, I was invited to become a member-artist at Art a la Carte; a super cute little art gallery in Occoquan, VA. I just moved in this May and am looking forward to hanging out with more like-minded people and having another sales channel for my original artwork and giclee prints. If you’re up in the Northern Virginia area, stop by Art a la Carte in Occoquan and say “hi”.
Six years later, what began as a home-based hobby to keep myself busy has ballooned into a multi-faceted, time consuming, and rewarding part of my life. Today, I’m a Signature Artist with the VWS, GWS, Baltimore Watercolor Society (BWS), and Potomac Valley Watercolorists (PVW). I have won multiple awards competing with very talented watercolor artists at exhibitions around Virginia and across the country, including several “best in show” awards. I have an online presence with my website and Etsy Shop, and a physical footprint at the Art a la Carte gallery in Occoquan, VA, where I sell my original watercolors and giclee prints. Just about the time I think I’ve reached the end of my journey and it couldn’t get any better, I get this wonderful opportunity to interview with VoyageVirginia. How cool is that! I love VoyageVirginia’s mission, small-town vibe, and focus on the arts…, and am honored to have the opportunity to share my story with VoyageVirginia’s readership. What’s next on my journey as a watercolor artist? I’m not sure, but I suspect it’s not quite over.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
What a great question! It hasn’t been a “smooth road” per se, but I think my initial successes certainly made it easier to continue forward. Had I felt my paintings were not very good or I didn’t have any talent, I probably would’ve stopped a long time ago and moved on to something else.
Struggles, no…, challenges, yes. I think my two biggest challenges have been 1) the fact that I’m 100% self-taught and 2) watercolor as a medium is very unforgiving. That’s a scary combination of challenges for a new watercolor artist. Everything since day-one has been trial and error. Even today, there are some aspects of each new painting I start that is new or unfamiliar, and I’m challenged to figure out how to solve it. But I love a good challenge. That’s where I get my energy. And if what they say is true, that you learn more from your mistakes than your successes, then I’m also a very learned watercolor artist. Bring on the next challenge!
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I appreciate all artistic styles, but am obviously a slave to realism. My default style is photorealism, where I try to recreate subjects as accurately and realistically a possible, focusing on natural form and color, with a heavy focus on depth, shadows, and contrast. It’s my photorealism style that tends to set me apart from my contemporaries. Most watercolor artists use a classical, interpretive style and technique which I characterize as big, wet, fast, and loose; big brushes, lots of water, and apply the paint quickly and loosely across the entire canvas. I use small brushes, very little water, and I apply the paint methodically and only in small areas of the canvas at a time. The differences between the classical and photorealism styles aren’t just on how a painting is executed. Also affected are the choice of subjects, planning, and preparation. For example, when it comes to sketching, classical watercolor artists can sketch a painting in an hour and paint it in a few hours. As a photorealist, it takes me days to sketch and weeks to paint.
My wide range of subjects reflects a desire to challenge myself and extend my abilities as an artist. My painting subjects generally fall into one of three categories; Still Life, Architecture & Cityscapes, and Southwest. Still Life subjects give me the space to do what I feel I do best; photorealism. Instead of using a classic approach of painting light to dark across the entire canvas, I treat each object as its own canvas and paint them individually, which I feel adds to the sense of realism. Architecture and cityscape subjects are another favorite of mine. The geometric shapes and lines that are inherent to architecture and cityscapes form solid compositions, making them excellent painting subjects in my opinion. I’m particularly fond of the colors, charm, distressed look and imperfect symmetry of European cities, and have painted multiple watercolors from my travels to Europe. Having grown up in Arizona, I have a particular passion for Southwest subjects. My choices in subject, color and composition are intended to highlight the unique culture and natural grit that is characteristic to the region. Like all artists I constantly challenge myself to enhance and expand my capabilities, so I don’t limit myself to those three subjects. I paint what interests me, which includes subjects that are generally outside my comfort zone, such as water, people, plants, and animals. It also includes works
If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
Oddly enough, I’d say my lack of an education in the arts and watercolor has been advantageous. It has allowed me to develop an artistic style that closely aligns with who I am as a person and my particular life experiences. As a person, I’m very detailed orientated so it makes sense that as an artist I’ve naturally gravitated towards a very detailed, photorealistic style. As a person, I love a good challenge, which explains why as an artist I choose very complicated subjects that stretch my abilities. As a person, I’m always on the lookout for new experiences and tend to avoid repetition. As an artist, that characteristic is reflected in the very diverse subject matter of my paintings. Had I been formally trained, I honestly don’t know if I would’ve enjoyed it as much as I do now.
Pricing:
- I have an Esty shop and offer original paintings anywhere from ~$250 to $1,500, depending on size and complexity.
- 11×14 giclee prints go for $50 on Etsy.
- 8×10 giclee prints are $45 on Etsy; and
- 5×7 giclee prints are $40 on Etsy.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.cjwatercolor.com
- Instagram: @cjwatercolor
- Other: https://www.etsy.com/shop/CJWatercolor
