“Whitman’s palette can be, at times, that of toned down Fauvism… One of the better pieces on view “Room with a Coffee Pot”, features more vivid hues and a grid-like pattern of orange-red rectangles stretching the question of realism. Nature is seen by Whitman twice removed, interpreted with her loose style and observed thru glass lightly” Joseph Woodward Art Critic Los Angeles Times

Born in Chicago, Nancy Whitman earned a Fine Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin. She followed this with a year of graduate study at the Chicago Art Institute and another extremely formative year in Paris, France.

Nancy paints in exuberant style, combining broad brush strokes and unexpected use of color. With her oil, acrylic and watercolor creations, she acknowledges the influence of Matisse, Jawlensky and the Fauves. The vigor and joie de viore bursting from her canvases reflect her love affair with nature. She paints amid the sheer beauty of her studio-gallery home in lush Upper Ojai canyon above Ojai.

Enormously versatile and varied in her expressions, Nancy Whitman attempts to work towards the feeling of the magic and freedom of a child. A critic once said of her, "Her work is infused with warmth, joy and a mood of exhilaration."

A winner of many awards in juried competition, Nancy's paintings are found in numerous private, public and corporate collections nationwide.

People in the vicinity of Ojai, California who wish to view her paintings are welcome to her home, Rancho Del Oso, which was built as a guest ranch in the 20's. The main building is used as a gallery and one of the cottages is her studio.

	“Ojai’s premiere Fauve, Nancy Whitman, binds the sunbursts of Van Gough within the line technique of Matisse. Her first prize winning dyptech is a splendorous rush of color… the best way to view her art is from a distance. Then the colors fuse, the subject mysteriously takes shape and incites a cognitive delight.” Alan Gregory Art Reporter Ojai Valley News