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Photo by Jim Craven Debby English of Grants Pass finishes one of her holiday window paintings at Round Table Pizza in the Medford Center. English, the mother of five, is among several window painters in the area who decorate for holiday cash. Artists work their magic on windows Holidays offer painters extra income, fun diversion By BILL KETTLER Debby English does it to get a little time out from raising five kids. Craig Cox does it to take a break from the art studio grind. Laura Wamsley does it to make people smile. They all do it because they love to paint. Since Thanksgiving, the three artists have been painting storefronts from Grants Pass to Ashland. English's little elves carry televisions across the windows of an electronics store. Cox's geese soar across a boat dealer's plate glass. Wamsley's wolves prowl the panes of an RV dealership. "This is like my relaxation time," said English, as she put the final touches on a wreath on the door of Medford's Round Table Pizza. "I don't have to listen to anybody," said the Grants Pass woman, "or hear all the kids screaming." "It's nice just getting out there this time of year," said Cox, a commercial illustrator who lives in Josephine County. "I like to talk to people about the real reason for the season." "I love doing something so beautiful that when people walk by they smile," said Wamsley, an Eagle Point artist. "I love giving people what they want." At least half a dozen window artists work the Rogue Valley during the Christmas holidays. English, Wamsley and most of the others paint a few dozen storefronts to earn some spare cash for a Christmas shopping spree. Cox attacks the window market with a commercial artist's zeal and will paint about 150 clients' windows before Christmas. "I'm up at 4:45 in the morning," he said, "and I'm out there painting windows 'til it's dark." Each artist brings a personal style to the glass. English, for example, often paints her characters in the exaggerated style of cartoons. Wamsley paints her subjects realistically, but her compositions move fluidly across the glass. Cox's controlled paintings reflect his training in commercial illustration. They recognize each other's styles and often know who did a window just by looking at the work. Painting outdoors creates special problems for window artists. Brush control suffers when hands stiffen in the winter chill. Artists have to mix their colors to a consistency that will adhere to the smooth, vertical surface without running. "It's not that easy to lay this paint on a window," said Wamsley. They learn to expect a steady stream of conversation and critique from shoppers and everyone else on the street. "People stop and say `Oh, that's a good job," said Wamsley. "Or they want to know how you do it." "You meet all kinds of people," said English. "The other day a guy came around preaching stuff out of the Bible." Artists generally spend several hours painting a storefront window. The more complex the composition, the more time it takes to render. "Every wolf I do takes an hour," said Wamsley. Tricks help speed the work. A snowy field, for example, goes on the glass in minutes with an ordinary paint roller. And sponges can be cut to make a stencil to replicate shapes such as leaves or snowflakes. Prices vary with each job and artist. A four-hour window might cost $100 or more, depending on who paints it. "A lot of artists just don't know what to charge," said Wamsley, who has bartered window paintings for beads, haircuts and Christmas cards. "Sometimes you give a price," said English, "and you hold your breath." A quick hand can earn enough to make the work worth the time. English has brought in $3,000 in a good season of window painting. Most painters have standards, even though they earn more if they paint fast. "There have been many times," said English, "when I've done a thing and stepped back and looked at it and said `Whoaaa,' and scraped it all off the window." Wamsley said new window painters seem to pop up every year, but there's still enough glass to go around. "There's so many windows out there," she said. "I couldn't do them all." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1998, Medford, Oregon USA