Some paintings are especially meaningful because of the story behind them.
My friends were married at Awbury Arboretum in Philadelphia, and I created this watercolor painting of the Francis Cope House as a wedding present for them.
Rather than giving them a traditional wedding gift, I wanted to paint the place where they celebrated one of the biggest days of their lives—something they could hang in their home and keep as a reminder of their wedding day.
Painting Their Wedding Venue
The Francis Cope House was the perfect subject for watercolor. Its historic stone exterior, distinctive windows, covered porch, and surrounding landscape give the building so much character.
For the painting, I kept the trees, lawn, and sky soft and loose while adding more detail to the house itself. This helps draw your eye toward the building while still keeping the light, atmospheric quality I love about watercolor.
The goal wasn't to create a perfect architectural rendering. I wanted it to feel like a memory of the place.
A Piece of Awbury Arboretum in Philadelphia
Located in Philadelphia's historic Germantown neighborhood, Awbury Arboretum is a beautiful 56-acre landscape with a history stretching back to the 1850s. The Francis Cope House was built around 1860–61 and today remains one of the property's most recognizable buildings.
For my friends, though, it now has another history attached to it: it's where they got married.
That's what I love about painting places like this. A building or landscape can mean something completely different once it becomes part of someone's story.
Custom Wedding Venue Paintings
This painting also gave me another idea I love: turning wedding venues into original artwork.
A watercolor of the place where a couple got married can make a meaningful wedding, anniversary, or first-anniversary gift. It could be a historic venue like Awbury Arboretum, a family property, a church, a barn, an estate, or even the landscape where an outdoor ceremony took place.
I create custom watercolor paintings of wedding venues, homes, historic buildings, and meaningful places throughout Philadelphia, Chester County, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, and beyond.