Everything you need to know about live wedding painting in Chicago

If you’re looking for an epic wedding gift or a special way to make your wedding stand out consider live wedding painting in the Chicagoland area.

This article will introduce you to the following:

What is live wedding painting in Chicago
What to expect at the wedding
How to hire a live wedding painter
What is the end result

See what people are saying about live wedding painting:

Kristina is an amazing artist and she beautifully captured our son’s wedding ceremony. It was a wonderfully unique experience for our guests to watch the painting transform throughout the night. If you are thinking of hiring an artist for your wedding or event, do not hesitate to hire Kristina!! She was wonderful to work with!
Kathy Gesualdo on Google

What is live wedding painting in Chicago?

Live wedding painting is a unique and rare form of wedding entertainment that not only delights guests at the wedding, but also results in a work of fine art for the couple to cherish. There is something magical about artwork created in the moment from direct observation. You can see the energy of the day in the brushstrokes. Some are fast and abstract due to the time constraint, yet in select areas, important details like the faces are put in slowly and deliberately. Watching the creation of a painting is so special that many people have never experienced it before. For this reason it makes the wedding more memorable and you are transported right back to that moment every time you look at the painting.

A live wedding painter will arrive to the wedding venue 1-2 hours prior to guests to set up and begin painting the background. Once the special moment to be captured is underway the real magic of the painting starts to happen. A quick photo is snapped to look at occasionally during the rest of the painting process. The painting will continue to develop for a few more hours during the reception.

Guests love watching the process they cannot believe how much the painting will transform in just a matter of hours.

Kristina Brewer painting a wedding ceremony at a private estate. Photo by Bonphotage

How to hire a live wedding painter:

As mentioned earlier, live wedding painting is very rare. It is important to secure your favorite artist as soon as possible. There are very few live painters due to the unique set of skills required to accomplish a nearly finished painting while interacting with about a hundred different people in a few hours.

To hire a live painter you will want to locate their contact form on their website and fill out the wedding details. They will need to know the date and location of the wedding to let you know their availability and cost including travel to the venue. You can expect to pay anywhere from $1700-$3500 in the Chicago area for this service.

Once you’re ready to move forward, the artist will collect general data about the wedding and your vision for the painting. It’s okay if some details are not decided yet. The important thing is securing the booking. There is another detailed discussion much closer to the wedding where everything is finalized. A live artist will require a deposit to finalize the booking.

Book a live painting with Kristina Brewer HERE

What is the end result?

Many times the couple is so busy during the wedding that they wont get their first look at the painting until the end and are moved to tears to finally see what was created at their wedding. This same reaction will come from very close friends and family of the couple. Artwork has a special way of creating emotion in the viewer and a painting that was created while surrounded by so much love and beauty brings out those strong emotions.

Kristina Brewer creates live wedding paintings in the traditional oil painting style. Inspired by the plein air painting masters of the early 20th century painting outdoors from direct observation. Due to the slow drying nature of oil paint, it is finished in studio, varnished and shipped to the couple after the wedding.

What sets Kristina’s live wedding paintings apart is the use of oil paint and and her realism style. Oil paint has a rich, vibrant nature that can make a painting glow. To capture the fresh look of a painting created in the moment background areas are made with large sweeping brushstrokes. The important details are highlighted with the attention to detail found in realism paintings. This creates the perfect balance to be transported to that moment every time you look at the painting.