02 Oct Stephenson Showcase: “Portraits of Memories” by Skye VanWinkle
Some memories live in boxes. Others hang on walls. For artist Skye VanWinkle, inspiration has always been close to home in the grain of polaroids, the flicker of family expressions, and the enduring impact of a creative parent.
“I grew up with art all around me,” she recalls. Her father, a full-time social worker and part-time artist, filled their home with his work. “He was my first influence.” That early exposure led VanWinkle to pursue a degree in art from Purdue University, later continuing at the Herron School of Art and Design to earn her teaching certification. She spent 23 years teaching art before stepping away from the classroom to devote herself fully to her own studio practice in Kokomo.
Her upcoming exhibit, Portraits of Memories, is a deeply personal exploration of emotion, family, and realism. It marks a shift away from earlier cityscape work, what she describes as “hard to put emotion into”, and toward expressive portraiture rooted in candid, unguarded moments. Working primarily in acrylic on canvas, VanWinkle uses texture, pattern, and scale to heighten the emotional depth of her subjects. “I wanted to focus on people’s faces, on what they’re feeling,” she says, “What better subject than family?”
Nostalgia is captured through a lens of warmth and reverence. Drawing from old family photographs, particularly the unposed snapshots of the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, Skye channels the spirit of expressionist painters like Alice Neel. “There’s something so honest in those casual photos,” she says. “They weren’t curated. They just happened.”
Each painting reflects that authenticity, bringing the viewer into intimate proximity with her subjects—often mid-laugh, mid-thought, or mid-moment. With layered textures and rich surfaces, her portraits feel both timeless and familiar, like memories you didn’t realize you’d forgotten.
Portraits of Memories will be on display at the Stephenson House Gallery from October 3-25, 2025. Join Skye for her public reception on opening night, Friday, October 3, from 6-9 p.m.