About

WHENT STUDIOS is the home and workplace of Thomas and Penny Whent who live and work on the Monterey Peninsula and daily endeavor to make beautiful art.

Penny's Artistic Journey

Penny creates abstract impressionist landscapes inspired by the serene waters and lush forests of the Monterey Peninsula, Lake Tahoe, and the Sierra Nevada foothills.

Her work also includes expressive florals and still lifes that blend abstraction with impressionistic charm.

Her artistic roots trace back to her father, an architect and photographer, who moved the family to Pacific Grove, where she attended high school and later studied art at Monterey Peninsula College. Though primarily self-taught, Penny has continuously nurtured her artistic passion.

A paralegal by profession, Penny painted part-time throughout her life and now devotes herself fully to her art in her home studio in Monterey, CA. She has exhibited in galleries, group collaborations, and solo shows across the Monterey Bay area.

Having explored various mediums and styles—including block printing, watercolor, and photography—she now focuses primarily on acrylics on canvas.

 

Thomas Whent: Bold Colors, Rich Textures, and Stories in Paint

Thomas creates splatter abstract paintings featuring heavily textured backgrounds layered with vibrant, multifaceted colors.

Working primarily in acrylics and mixed media on stretched canvas, he also explores folk art with vivid colors, flattened perspectives, bold forms, and pointillist details.

A California General Building Contractor by trade, Thomas applies his expertise with building materials by using a masonry finishing trowel to create thick spackle impasto backgrounds before layering acrylic paint.

A natural-born storyteller, he brings narrative depth to his folk art series and paints daily in his home studio in Monterey, CA.

 

Whent Studios Featured in the Press