Please read with the understanding that for me (and I suspect most artists) my work is always in progress, so the following statements are not meant to be or describe all I am as an artist.
I have been creating art for over thirty years. While this site focuses on my fine art, I have included information about my Illustration work, my scenic art work and my film concept illustration. I have also separated out two themes, namely Pin-up art and Angel art. I have done this for two reasons. First, both of these catagories attract a specific audience. Second, the pin-up work has its own site which I provide a link to. Apart from that I consider both of these bodies of work to be included in my fine art. Time and time again people have come into my studio wondering how I can paint both angels and pinup and I am always amused and confused by such a idea. My work is esentially about the female form and spirit in all its glory.
My career path started in the early 70s when I completed a 2 year course at the Pan American Art School, NYC in advertising design and Illustration. Since then I have taken night courses and workshops on painting the figure at the Society of illustrators with Daniel Schwartz, The Art Students Leaque with Robert Beverly Hale and David Leffel. School of Visual Arts with Jack Potter and John Murrey. During the seventies I freelanced, creating illustrations and graphic design for many and diverse corporations, including Royal Air Moroc, Lietz, Burger King, Sasson Jeans, Charlie Browns and many more. In 1978 I started to work At the JCPenney headquarters in NYC as an Art director for special promotions. Working as part of a team to create umbrella display themes for special events and holidays. While working there I freelanced at night and began Illustrating over 200 book covers for Bantam, Dell, Harlequin, Scholastic, etc. mostly Romance with some westerns and young adult titles.
In the early nineties I began to create my fine art which centers around the female and what I consider to be beautiful. Perhaps my years painting the heroines on Romance novel covers prompted me in my choice of subjects, but as I reflect on it I realize that my early influences and reasons to enter the art field was the illustrations of the sixties and seventies that portrayed attractive women in editorial pieces and starlets in the movie and theater posters. Bob Peak, Richard Amsel, Howard Rodgers, Robert Macginnes are just the tip of the iceberg from that period, before them my heros were Rockwell, Gibson, Pyle, Wyeth, Gruger, Coll, Christy, Lyendecker, Lagatta, Elvgrin, again just a few of the many that influenced me. The fine artists that Inspired me are Sargent, Klimt, Bouguereau, Rubens, Rembrandt, Mucha, Latrec, Rodin, Waterhouse, Turner and many contemporary realist painters.
Many of the Paintings / Drawings on this site are AVAILABLE. The availability of each peice is noted in it's title / information section. Also most of the works are available as a limited edition giclee print and a smaller sized open edition print. I do all my own printing to insure the best quality. The edition size is 250, with exceptions being noted. Please address any interest you may have in my work to etfineart@gmail.com or you may call me on my studio line, 201-963-1983
Thank you,