Wendy Clifford remembered as a friend and inspiration to many

IN MEMORIUM

BY BELINDA VERNON

30 Jan, 2022

Artist Wendy Ann Clifford was remembered by family and friends Sunday, January 22, at a celebration of her life at the Mangawhai Library Hall. Wendy died unexpectedly on January 16, 2023.

Wendy was much loved by the art community within Mangawhai, the place she had called home for more than a decade. She was fondly remembered as a wife, mother, artist, print-maker, teacher, mentor and friend.

An accomplished painter and print-maker, Wendy’s art is on many walls throughout New Zealand, particularly Mangawhai, and many of those works returned to decorate the Library Hall on Sunday.

Wendy was a proudly self-taught artist, resisting suggestions to seek formal training. Her daughter Gillian recounted how, after an interview with a particularly persistent journalist who wanted to know where she had trained, Wendy found herself described in a newspaper as autodidactic. A quick dive into the dictionary confirmed its meaning as self-taught or someone who has learnt a subject without the benefit of a teacher or formal education, the word now firmly in the Clifford family lexicon.

Wendy was a believer in art conveying message and meaning. She was a strong advocate of observing the world around you before drawing. Her favourite quote of an unnamed (herself?) five-year-old was: “First I think, then I draw my think.”

Her ‘Retrospective’ exhibition in April 2021 brought together many of her works created through her lifetime, displaying the skill and diversity of an accomplished artist and print-maker. At the exhibition she also shared this definition of drawing: ‘Drawing is the speech of art, mind and hand working together, it is thought on a page, it is thought made visible’.

Wendy tutored and mentored many in the Mangawhai community. She was a gentlewoman who was generous and genuine with her time and knowledge. Never arrogant nor condescending, always warm, thoughtful and caring.

While diminutive in size, Wendy had a strongly independent spirit. Friends recalled many examples of her resilience, independence and ingenuity, such as when after taking a wrong (muddy) driveway and becoming stuck she used her nous and determination to extricate herself rather than seeking help.

She loved walking and hiking and was proud to have ‘knocked off’ mountains Taranaki, Ruapehu and Ngauruhoe in a single weekend, mountains she fondly depicted in her paintings.

Messages forwarded on hearing of her death reflect how well she was regarded and the impact she had on those she met:

• “She was always a shining beacon of encouraging positivity, making you believe the impossible was actually possible. She will be sorely missed by our small community to which she gave so much time and care.”
• “She was always very level-headed and great to chat to whenever we met.”
• “She was a wonderful, generous friend and inspiration to me.”
• “She was a wonderful person, so unassuming but so talented.”
• “Wendy was a beautiful soul.”
• “I daily enjoy, and am so proud to own, several of her prints. What a gifted artist and neat person she was!”

Wendy Clifford leaves a wonderful legacy through her art for not only her friends and family but also others to enjoy and remember her. She touched everyone she met.

An accomplished painter and print-maker, Wendy Clifford was a proudly self-taught artist, who was generous and genuine with her time and knowledge. PHOTO/FILE