"I feel that God's sunlight on a single blade of grass is such a miracle and so difficult to capture in paint, it is worth a lifetime of trying"--Paul Strisik
Legendary artist Paul Strisik, N.A., A.W.S., was not the kind of artist you'd find cooped up inside a studio. As one of the great plein air painters of his generation, Paul preferred to be outdoors using the sun to light his subjects. His years of experience in capturing that natural light are offered here in Capturing Light in Oils.
In these pages, Paul Strisik presents a step-by-step approach to using the three most powerful tools an artist can employ--design, color, and light. Using the techniques taught in this book, Strisik teaches how to use natural conditions to your advantage to create artwork that truly expresses your vision.
Strisik, Paul: - Paul Strisik painted light and color in all its manifestations. He went beyond mere description to explore the reasons why things look the way they do. There is luminosity in Strisik's skies that glimmers off the earth, glosses the surface of the water and reveals his excitement and emotional involvement in the subject. Paul Strisik was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. In 1955 he moved to Rockport, Ma. where he maintained his studio and gallery until his death in 1998. He traveled extensively in North America and abroad to enjoy the challenge of new subjects. He was a dedicated plein air painter, finding even the briefest outdoor studies carried him back to the subject more true to the feeling, the light and the mood of the place than photographs. His photographs were used for intricate details. An occasional interior or still life offered him a change of pace from his outdoor activities. He worked in both oil and watercolor. Strisik was particularly fond of painting the Southwest where he had a second home in Santa Fe for a number of years. Paul studied at the Art Students League in New York with Frank Vincent Dumond. It was from Dumond that he learned about cause and effect, to learn what causes appearances in order to paint the effect with understanding. He exhibited in numerous national exhibitions including The National Academy of Design, N.Y., American Watercolor Society, N.Y., The Royal Watercolor Society, London, England, 1992, Catto Gallery, London, 1992, Artists of American Show, Cowboy Hall of Fame, Oklahoma City, Ok. Thomas Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Ok., Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe, N.M., Millicent Rogers Museum, Taos, N.M. Western Heritage Show, Texas, Albuquerque Museum of Fine Arts, N.M., DeCordova Museum, Lincoln, Ma., Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, Oh.. Copley Society of Boston, Ma., The Guild of Boston Artists, Whistler Museum, Lowell, Ma. and others His concepts and technical skills are included in his book," The Art of Landscape Painting" 1980, published by Watson-Guptill. His last book, "Capturing Light in Oils", a Northlight Publication was released in 1995. His work may be seen at The Paul Strisik Gallery in Rockport, Ma. from June to October and at the following galleries across the country, The Nedra Matteucci Galleries, Santa Fe, N.M., Whistle-Pik Galleries, Fredericksburg, Tx., Parson's Fine Art Gallery, Taos, N. M., The Sylvan Gallery, Charleston, S.C., and the Wiscasset Bay Gallery, Wiscasset Bay, Maine.
