Wanderlust in Watercolor

Tallahassee artist René Lynch has a knack for making friends wherever she goes. A seasoned traveler with a passport full of stamps, she’s eager to strike up conversations with strangers, learn from locals, and gather inspiration for her lush watercolor paintings. Whether it’s a country’s scenery, history, food, or culture, each destination offers fuel for her creative process. 

Lynch’s suitcase is always packed with a sketchbook, paper, brushes, and a small palette, and she has discovered some clever carry-on hacks along the way.

“A lot of times, you can’t travel with paint, but I bring Daniel Smith watercolor sticks,” she shares. “They are solid pigments that are easy to travel with. You can dip them into water or scrub your wet brush on them and then put color down.”

Photo by Inga Finch Photography

One of the most relied-upon tools in Lynch’s arsenal is the camera on her smartphone, which she uses to document anything that catches her eye.

Lynch has gathered artwork from an American expatriate couple she met in Paris and picked up delicate watercolors from an artist in Venice’s Piazza San Marco. In London, she bought a piece from a painter near Saint James’ Palace, and in Christchurch, New Zealand, she spent hours chatting with an artist before buying two of her prints. Lynch prefers buying small pieces, making them easier to bring home safely.

“I just love that every time I look around my house, I see the story of my travels,” she says, “Like, ‘Oh, I remember when we were on that barge in southwestern France, and I bought that piece from that cool artist.’”

Photo by Inga Finch Photography

When reflecting on her adventures, Lynch is quick to acknowledge that travel is a privilege not available to everyone. She’s grateful for each adventure and dreams of future destinations like Australia, Scandinavia, Buenos Aires, and the South Pacific islands. Excited to share her love of travel with her grandchildren, she’s promised them a trip to Paris and is contemplating a kid-friendly tour of the National Parks. She knows that travel can be transformative for youngsters and believes, “The earlier you start them, the better, so they can expand their world view.”

She fondly recalls her first trip abroad in college, when a four-day solo stay in Paris gave her a newfound sense of accomplishment, independence, and confidence. “It totally changed my life.” That experience also sparked a deeper understanding of how travel can build empathy, tolerance, and acceptance, revealing the beautiful differences and the commonalities that connect us all.

“It’s interesting to hear how people in other countries manage day care for their kids, how they go about getting a job, how they afford housing, how they deal with neighboring countries,” Lynch says. “It’s important to be respectful, curious, and willing to listen to other people. When you are, you see we all want the same things. We all want to love and be loved. We all want to be safe and fed and happy. And it doesn’t hurt to create or enjoy art while we’re at it.”