Ashley Spitsnogle painting “live” at the 2018 Heartfelt Gala in Nebraska.
While growing up in a small farming community in Odell, Nebraska, Ashley Spitsnogle loved drawing horses and mermaids. After her life’s journey led her to attend and then graduate from Doane University in Crete, Ashley studied at Studio Arts College International in Florence, Italy, for a month where she focused on painting and drawing. When returning to the States, Ashley decided she wanted to do whatever it took to become a professional artist.
Her first professional project was illustrating the children’s book, Josh the Baby Otter, for the Joshua Collingsworth Memorial Foundation whose mission is to create awareness about water safety. Since then, she has traveled throughout the nation on behalf of the Foundation, partnering with numerous organizations including Rotary International and the Michael Phelps Foundation to prevent drowning accidents. Today, Ashley stay very busy commissioning diverse art for clients that includes Husker prints, abstract pieces, and paintings of cattle, horses, and landscapes. Additionally, she hosts art shows and paints live at events that include the Cattleman’s Ball of Nebraska, Teammates Mentoring, the Lied Center, Heartfelt Ball, Nebraska Bar Association, Farm Credit Services of America, and many others.
When creating her art, Ashley often develops a composition in Photoshop first, so she can gather an idea of how it will look on canvas in different ways. After her process leads her to utilizing charcoal on the canvas to lay out the shapes for the painting, Ashley then layers in blocks of color and adds the details as the final step. In order to demonstrate her process, Ashley has produced numerous, fascinating time-lapse videos that detail the beginning to end stages of a painting. She adds, “Painting live is like a performance. As long as I am overly prepared, I become hyper-focused and just start painting. Generally, I give myself four hours to complete a painting on a three-foot by four-foot canvas, so it’s large enough for people to see from a distance.”
Ashley, who has always been a big Husker fan, became licensed through the University of Nebraska to commission her artwork three years ago after she painted a Brook Berringer and Tom Osborne painting live at a Teammates mentoring event. After Coach Osborne signed the painting, she posted it on Facebook, prompting many to reach out including Brook’s family and friends. The following year, Ashley painted “Last Tunnel Walk” live at a Heartfelt Incorporated event for families who have lost children. The painting, approved beforehand by both Sam Foltz’s and Brook Berringer’s families, shows Brook and Sam walking into the light with Brook’s hand on Sam’s shoulder, as if to lead and comfort him. After the painting was auctioned off, Sharon Dickinson (the president of Heartfelt Incorporated), Jill and Gerald Foltz, and Ashley and her family delivered two prints to Bill Moos and Matt Davison at the University. Today, the prints hang in Memorial Stadium. Ashley adds, “I am honored the painting has touched people, as both guys are still making a lasting influence and impression on others.” Additionally, her painting of Coach Scott Frost made the cover of the Husker Sports Fall Guide, of which over 60,000 copies were distributed. Recently, Big Red Wrap Up and other news stations have featured stories on her Husker art.
Ashley’s artistic portrayal of Brook Berringer and Sam Foltz
The best piece of advice Ashley received when she decided to become a professional artist was to never give up and undervalue herself. She loves having a work space in Main Street Studios and Art Gallery in Omaha, among other artists who inspire her daily. When she is not painting approximately four to five hours daily, she works on a regular basis with the Joshua Collingsworth Memorial Foundation, illustrating and helping with the publication of magazines and brochures. Her art is currently displayed in Lincoln at Venue Restaurant & Lounge, Scheels, Main Street Studios and Art Gallery, Husker Hounds, and Revitalift in Lincoln.
“Nebraska Strong”, painted by Ashley at the Cattleman’s Ball to portray the hay being brought to farmers after the historic floods of 2019.
Ashley has gained much from pursuing her passion. “I am excited to wake up each day and get to work,” she says. “I also have the freedom to travel and enjoy the fact that no two days are alike.” For anyone who wants to pursue their own passion in life, Ashley advises, “When you don’t dread going to work every day, it is worth every sleepless night and stress. I don’t know what kind of person I would be if I didn’t pursue my passion. You only live once, so you might as well enjoy what you do.”
Edgar Degas once said, “Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” Every time Ashley stands in front of a canvas and begins another creation, she helps all of us see the beauty in our beloved football team, the Nebraska landscape, and life itself.
To read more about Ashley or to purchase one of her pieces, visit ashleyspitsnogle.com.
Vicky DeCoster is a Certified Life Coach based in Omaha, Nebraska, who specializes in helping her clients both locally and nationwide to move past obstacles, create a plan for happiness, and cross the bridge of transition to find a new and fulfilling direction in life. To read more about her and her practice, visit her at crossthebridgecoaching.com.
