A Castle by the Sea: Painting the OceanCliff Hotel

I've painted a lot of wedding venues over the years, but few have the fairytale presence of the OceanCliff Hotel in Newport, Rhode Island.

Built on the cliff above Naragansett Bay, the venue feels part storybook, park Gilded Age relic--with turrets, sprawling green lawns and sailboats dotting the horizon. It was originally the summer home of a 19th century railroad tycoon (the guy literally built the Trans-Siberian Railroad for a Russian tsar), and it still has that feeling of grandeur you don't come by often.

"Jenny did an amazing job and created something so magical for me to gift to my sister on her wedding day. I had great communication with Jenny throughout the process. The art I received showcases true talent and pristine attention to detail. I can’t wait to gift someone else a Jenny Paints By Hand painting. Thank you Jenny!"

This commission was a gift from a sister to the bride--a gesture as thoughtful as it was time-sensitive. I painted the 11x14 piece on a tight deadline to be sure it arrived in time for the wedding.

The perspective is a little different from most of my work, with a raised, slightly aerial view to capture both the castle-like structure and the ocean beyond. My favorite detail might be the tiny round fountain nestled in the circle drive--it's such a delicate, quiet detail in the middle of something so grand. I also tucked two little boats into the bay: a sailboat and a larger freighter in the distance. A tiny narrative inside a larger one.

There's a kind of pressure with painting something this grand. But sometimes, when you trust the process, it takes you somewhere that even you didn't see coming--in the best possible way.

To commission a custom watercolor illustration, visit jennypaintsbyhand.com/gallery-of-work