Live Art at the Wedding of Cat & Ben

My wonderful neighbor Kim asked me a few months back, “Could you do a live wedding painting for Cat and Ben?” I replied “Sure.” Then I had to ask, “What’s that?”

With a little googling, we figured it out. I would create an original artwork in my signature style of drawing and papercut to commemorate the wedding of her daughter Catherine to Benjamin Kester on Mother’s Day 2023. I would create much of it live and in person during the wedding itself.

Fortunately, the wedding was scheduled at the Regatta Inn at the Sunset Cay Marina on the marsh side of Folly Beach, in our neck of the woods. I spent a few days drawing the Inn and planning the background scene as much as possible without the major action or stars of the show. While I sat on the dock drawing, the oysters and dolphins kept me company.

Sketching at the Regatta Inn, Folly Beach SC

In the studio I prepared by cutting various elements of the landscape: the Inn in multiple sizes, half a dozen palm trees, shimmering light on the pale blue folly river, broad patches of marsh green grass, and slim little distant shorelines in forest green and blue. Sunday would be show time. Game on.

My easel set up and ready for action

On the big day, I arrived around noon, several hours before the wedding would start. I set up my easel and materials, and for a while I rigged up an umbrella sheltering my work from pesky showers. I cut the wooden gothic arch out of brown paper and had it ready to glue in. I drew and cut the swinging doors through which they would walk, just in case I needed them too.

I checked with Cat and Ben about what moment they wanted to capture, and they left it up to me to choose. When the ceremony began, I had my big freak-out moment, for all I could see were dozens of chairs and backs of heads, so many chairs and backs of heads! How am I going to draw all those chairs and backs of heads? Panic in my head and chest, and the wedding procession had begun.

During the ceremony, I grabbed my phone and took my own quick shots. I got the good one, the right one, the recessional: the moment when the formalities are over. The moment that this precious pair of humans walks out into their new life together, the moment that their smiles are big and beaming and real and priceless. That’s the one moment that matters. Not countless chairs and backs of heads.

Laying out the background scene. drawing of Cat and Ben on the tray by the green brush

With the ceremony over, I moved inside the party tent near my husband and friends at a back corner table. I sketched the couple from the photos I took with my phone. Then I got to work gluing all the scenery elements into place, composing the background and deciding where the happy couple would go. While my friends and neighbors danced and chatted and ate, I worked at a furious pace back in the corner. Lots of nice, friendly guests would come see my work in progress, marveling at the details they could recongize right in front of them, with the magic moment coming together.

Darkness fell, so it got hard to see what I was doing by the lights of the dance floor. (I hadn’t thought to bring a clip light.) By then, my energy was about spent, and I was satisfied that I got all the “bones” in place, I was happy with the composition, I could see it was going to work out.

Work in progress by the light of wedding disco

Back up. Reading about professional wedding painters, many knock out colorful yet sloppy scenes in acrylic on canvas in a few hours. I’ll go head-to-head about style and aesthetic and the silly overall cheese factor against those painters any day, but hey, they are fast! So I had thought I needed to finish this thing by the night’s end or it would turn into a pumpkin 0r something, and I was running out of steam.

The wedding portrait at night’s end

Of course I could finish it at home. No pumpkins, no cheese either. Those fast painters likely do too. I spent another week in the studio making it a true Jennifer York artwork worthy to hang in museums.

I’ll admit that my biggest mistake/ challenge was that I never got to spend time sketching Cat and Ben in person. The day went so quickly, I had to work from photographs, so I drew and redrew their tiny faces countless times, drawing, screwing up, tearing it up, redrawing dozens and dozens of times. It had to look LIKE THEM. Finally on day 4 I got it. Phew.

And all the other stuff was gravy: beautiful sunset, fun party tent, pretty pink clouds, beachy architecture, lowcountry details of marsh and water and trees and grass and water and light and joy and love. You know, the fun stuff.

“Wedding Portrait of Cat & Ben Kester, May 14, 2023.” paper & ink on wood panel, 20” x 30.”

I loved this commission. I am ever grateful to Kim Shuey-Barker for trusting my artistry to create this for Catherine and Ben. Dear neighbors, I wish you all a lifetime of love and happiness.

Detail of Cat and Ben

Through this process, I solidified my objective in wedding portraits. This is what I figured out:

Weddings can be big, busy affairs, so my goal as the artist is to edit the scene down to a truly romantic, yet accurately depicted, storybook memory of your big day. I will create an original treasure worthy to hang in a museum JUST FOR YOU to enjoy for a lifetime.

Got a wedding or special event or no occasion at all coming up?

Please contact me to discuss your commission ideas and I will make them come to magical life.