Cindy Wider
Artist, Author and Co-founder of DrawPj.com
Location: West Yorkshire, United Kingdom
About Cindy
Cindy is a professional artist, author and art instructor with over 20 years of experience of sharing her passion for art with her students. As one of the internet’s most experienced instructors teaching on-line since 2008 she is the co-founder of DrawPj.com along with her husband and fellow artist Stuart Wider. Her unique method of teaching students how to draw is known as ‘The Cindy Wider Method’. The course which is based on Cindy’s method is the The Complete Drawing Certificate Course.
Cindy was born in Brisbane Australia 1968 and grew up in the Western Highlands of Papua New Guinea. At the age of eleven years Cindy (along with her parents and siblings) returned to Australia where she lived until recently. Three years ago Cindy moved with her husband and their two young daughters to West Yorkshire United Kingdom where she is currently residing and works as full time artist, author and co-founder of DrawPj.com.
Cindy Wider is proud to be an official Ambassador for Derwent Products and St Cuthberts Mill Paper.
Selected Pencil, Coloured Pencil and Charcoal Works
Documentary about Cindy Wider (ABC Open)
In this documentary filmed as part of the ABC Open Project ‘Artist by Artist’ Cindy describes how her art style evolved to include ‘fire’ through her experience of being evacuated from an Australian Bushfire.
Exhibition 2016
Cindy’s most recent joint exhibition titled ‘Contrasting Lives – from the Australian Coast to a Village in England’ was shown in March 2016 at the TYTO Regional Gallery in Ingham Queensland Australia and was extremely well-received.
In the video shown here, Cindy discusses the works with Local vicar Richard Burge prior to them being shipped from her home in England to Australia.
Selected Tropical Series Digital Works
Publications
A prolific author as well as an artist, Cindy is a highly regarded internationally recognized author of many art education publications including the soft cover books:
- Twelve Coloured Pencil Techniques
- Twelve Charcoal Techniques
- Six Pencil Techniques
- ‘Paint In Your Pyjamas – every woman’s guide to finding your life purpose through art’
- Action Painting Workshop
plus 37 e-books which form the CPD accredited ‘Complete Drawing and Painting Certificate Course’. Cindy is currently in the process of designing a further 48 e-books that form the young children’s version of this same art course.
Cindy has also been published in well respected art industry publications:
- UK Coloured Pencil Society – Talking Point – Issue 61 July 2016 – 4 page tutorial – ‘A Juicy Strawberry’
- Australian Society of Coloured Pencil Artists – Drawn To Colour – issue 1 March 2016 – 5 page article ‘Unleash Your Inspiration – in 3 easy steps.’
- Ann Kullberg Books (soft cover book sales) – October 2015 ‘Draw Portraits In Colored Pencil) tutorial included along among 30 master colored pencil artists.
- Ann Kullberg Portrait Tools (USA online tutorial publication and sales) – December 2015 ‘Ultimate Guide To Drawing an Eye.
- Ann Kullberg’s Color (USA colored pencil magazine) December 2015 – Spotlight article published by Nanci Smith titled ‘Cindy Wider – healing through art.’
- Leisure Painter (The UK’s best-selling art magazine) June 2015 – artwork published
Selected Papua New Guinea Series Artworks
Selected Exhibitions
- 2016 – UK Coloured Pencil Society Annual Open Exhibition Menier Gallery London (juried and exhibited)
- 2016 – Joint Exhibition with Brigitte Back at the TYTO Regional Gallery Ingham Queensland Australia ‘Contrasting Lives – From the Australian Coast to the Village in England.
- 2011 – Queensland Regional Art Awards Touring exhibition Curated by Michele Helmrich (Senior Curator, University of Queensland Art Museum) and was shown at the State Library of Queensland as well as toured throughout regional Queensland.
- 2011 – ABC and Queensland Arts Council Documentary Project Exhibition, The ‘J’ Noosa junction
- 2011- Solo Touring Exhibition – Rolling Hills Of White Flat, The Cooper Gallery Noosaville, Outback Regional Gallery & Waltzing Matilda Centre Winton (by invitation)
- 2009 – Joint Artist Talk and Exhibition – Art on Hastings with Colley Whisson, Sheraton Noosa Resort
- 2008 – Joint Exhibition with Michelle Winter, The Cooper Gallery Hastings street Noosa
- 2006 – Joint Exhibition with Stuart Wider, Sheraton Noosa Resort
- 2005 – Joint Exhibition Life in Paradise – with Stuart Wider, Sheraton Noosa Resort
- 2005 – Group Exhibition by invitation – PNG 30th Independence Anniversary, Christie Corporate Brisbane
- 2004 – Solo Exhibition – Sunshine Coast Homes and Holidays, Twin Waters Art Gallery
Awards and other Achievements
- 2011 – Finalist Wayne Kratzmann Award Flying Arts and Queensland Regional Arts Awards
- 2011 – ABC open and Queensland Arts Council Documentary project ‘Artist by Artist’
- 2009 – Finalist (one of three) selected for 2009/2010 Yellow and White Pages Directory Cover
- 2008 – Graduate Diploma Fundamentals of Art ‘Art Instruction Schools’ USA (studied via correspondence under the guidance of university lecturer Pauline Jonach and professional illustrator Ron Rivett)
- 2004 – Microsoft corporation Sydney Australia purchased a series of limited edition Prints from an original collaborative artwork they purchased. The artwork was created by myself and Stuart wider; for their annual corporate Christmas gift.
- 2001 – Merit Prize – Elders Stock Journal/Royal Adelaide Show – 2001
- 2000 – First Prize – Elders Stock Journal/Country Arts SA Royal Adelaide Show
- 1999 – Country Arts SA Scholarship study silk screen printing and exhibition
Professional Associations and Memberships
- 2015 – Member of UK Coloured Pencil Society
- 2015 – Member Australian Society Of Pencil Artists
- 2013 – Listed in the Design and Art Australia Data base
- 2011 – Certified member of the National Association for the Visual Arts (NAVA)
Teaching Experience
- 2009 to present – Co-Founder, Art Course Curriculum Designer and Instructor DrawPj.com. Responsibilities include training instructors to teach the forty-two week curriculum that I designed for beginning art students in online or real world classroom environments.
- 2009 – Trainer art and creativity Pomona and District Community House Queensland Australia. Provided training in painting techniques for staff in anticipation of Seniors’ Week
- 2008 – 2014 Art Instructor and Curriculum Designer Drawspace.com – Nova Scotia, Canada – taught my own course curriculum in virtual art classrooms for one of the largest recreational art tuition websites in the world at the time
- 2007 – Tutor Fairway Studios – Goondiwindi, Queensland, Australia
- 2007 – Tutor Illustration House – South Bank, Brisbane, Australia
- 2007 – Tutored Weekend Workshops at the South Pacific Resort Noosaville Queensland Australia in Composition, Acrylic Painting and drawing.
- 2003 to 2007 Co- Founder, Art curriculum designer and Tutor StuartCindy Art – Noosaville, Queensland, Australia
- 1998 – Instructor of Creativity and Illustration TAFE College – Port Lincoln, South Australia