Handdrawn lettering saying "Speaking & Workshops"

Wendy regularly speaks and teaches workshops on the unique power drawing offers to help us slow down, get curious, look deeply, and connect to people and the world around us. In essence, she shows people how to pay attention.

Wendy pulls from the many adventures she’s had in her own drawing life – documenting Guantanamo Bay court proceedings, having stereotype-busting conversations with folks like a bootmaker in rural Utah, hanging out with unhoused folks at the public library and SF’s Tenderloin, drawing with thousands of kids during the darkest moments of the pandemic, learning to use drawing as a tool for focus, emotional regulation, and connection... She loves to get audiences to actually draw in real time. In just a few minutes, she helps them experience the power of drawing: they slow down, pay attention, open their hearts, and remember how miraculous every person is when have the courage to look closely.

TEd Talk

The Art of Paying Attention – Monterey California, August 2021

Workshops and talks

Wendy in her studio in San Francisco.

Photo: Peter Prato for The New York Times

Wendy regularly speaks about the unique power drawing offers to help us slow down, get curious, look deeply, and connect us to people and the world around us.

Wendy in her studio in San Francisco.

Photo: Peter Prato for The New York Times

She draws on the many adventures she’s had in her own life while drawing – documenting Guantanamo Bay court proceedings, having stereotype-busting conversations with folks like a bootmaker in rural Utah, hanging out with unhoused folks at the public library and SF’s Tenderloin, drawing with thousands of kids during the darkest moments of the pandemic... She loves to get audiences to actually draw in real time. In just a few minutes, she helps them experience the power of drawing: they slow down, pay attention, open their hearts, and remember how miraculous every single person is when have the courage to look closely.   

Past Speaking & Workshops

TED, Netflix, 99u, Adobe Max, Obama Summit, Aspen Ideas: Health, National Portrait Gallery, De Young Museum, Romania’s Power of Storytelling, NewsXChange: Spain, NewsXChange: Morocco, AIGA, Eye On Design, ICON, Mailchimp, Airbnb, Corcoran School of Art & Design, Art Center College of Design, and more.

Interested in bringing Wendy in for a keynote or workshop? Reach out.

A photo of Wendy in her studio. She is smiling while painting at her desk. The desk is covered in lots of papers and art materials.

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