ARTISTS BIO
B. 1954 Minot, ND
Edu. Bachelor's of Science Degree with Honors, studio art major, Northern State University, Aberdeen, SD 1975
Full-time gallery and commercial artist since 1979
Owner - Flat Earth Art Company, Spearfish, SD Est. 1994
Signature member Artists of the Black Hills 2007-2025
President - Artists of the Black Hills 2015-2019
Chairman - Black Hills Plein Air Paint Out 2018, 2019, 2020
Exhibitions committee, Dahl Fine Arts Center, Rapid City, SD 2018-2023
Chairman 2022-2023
Signature Member Northern Plains Watercolor Society
Associate Member American Watercolor Society
ARTISTS STATEMENT
I have long been interested in the lower public strata of the American Diaspora and its denizens.
Many of the venues depicted here retain the dignity of function even as derelicts in the making and their hardscrabble inhabitants exhibit a particular earned nobility.
THE PROCESS: All works begin with a drawing which I believe is the foundation of all art. It contains the essence of the idea and all subsequent variations run the risk of becoming lesser derivatives of that original concept.
Landscapes are drawn from life either on paper, panel or watercolor block. Figurative paintings originate in a drawing from immediate memory.
WATERCOLOR: As is the case with most artists, the work evolves. Figurative paintings came first and as my involvement in the plein air movement progressed, nocturnes and landscapes gained prominence. Mediums rise and and fall as well. After a conscious effort to develop my dormant watercolor skill set, these paintings now comprise the bulk of my current output. Holding an advantage of ease of travel and immediacy, I find its inherent difficulty a much needed mental challenge. The success rate is not as robust as my pastel works, but the completion of a competent painting is reward enough to justify further pursuit.
FIGURATIVE WORKS: We remember the main events of our day, but probably do not recall many of the lesser things we experience. With a small amount of conscious effort, we can see the routine of our lives punctuated by little stories. They don't need to be stressful or even involve us directly and it could be something we only see for just a second. These dramas may be observed but not realized until we make time to think about what we did or saw in a day.
I may not recognize I've seen a future painting unless I recall my day and if I fail to record it as a sketch within a day or two, it is lost. Occasionally, I will know immediately that I must paint what I have witnessed manifested by a physical sensation while I make visual notes. A "grand mal" event happens when I have drawing materials at hand and sketch while the act unfolds. Not all sketches turn into paintings and why I choose one subject over another, I suspect, is a result of some inner sense of pathos I don't fully understand. It may be a purely visceral reaction to life's slightly mad scenarios.
My aim as an artist is to render these observations as truthfully as my abilities will allow. Each painting is a struggle between my original vision and my skills as an artist to capture the moment. I often think the real art occurs at the instant of recognition before craft has an opportunity to put its own interpretation into play.
NOCTURNES: I am attracted to the nocturne for a number of reasons. The high contrast of saturated color on a dark field is visually appealing to me as an artist. The static quality of a night scene offers a solitude that daylight does not permit in the same setting. I find that nocturnes have a "film noir" feel with its implied mysteries and/or sense of danger that heightens my awareness.
PLEIN AIR: The life of a working artist can be a solitary pursuit. I began my involvement with the plein air movement in an effort to connect with my peers, rather than any love of the landscape. After participating in over 45 organized plein events in the west,
I have been rewarded by a number of strong relationships with my fellow artists, numerous awards and sales, and a greater skill set that serves all of my work. It was rare for me to paint a landscape other than a nocturne outside of a plein air event and I found the process to be the polar opposite of my figurative works. Plein air paintings are a result of a deliberative process of searching for suitable compositions and are executed quickly due to the constraints of painting under changing lighting conditions. Those exercises made me more confident in my studio pursuits. As the Covid pandemic began in 2020, plein air paint outs largely became canceled or suspended and my involvement in formal events declined as well. I have done a few paint-outs since and whether I return to a more inclusive schedule remains to be seen. I do greatly enjoy working outdoors in the magnificent vistas of the American West.
SELECTED AWARDS
Purchase Award, SD Art for Public Buildings Collection 2026
Award of Merit, Juried Members Exhibition, Tubac Center of the Arts, Tubac AZ 2025
Silver Medal, Northern Plains Watercolor Society Members Exhibition 2025
Merit Award, Northern Plains Watercolor Society Members Exhibition 2024
People's Choice, Harvey Dunn Plein Air Event, Desmet, SD 2023
Artists Choice (tie), Harvey Dunn Plein Air Event, Desmet, SD 2023
Merit Award, Northern Plains Watercolor Society Members Exhibition 2022
Best Nocturne, SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2019
Best of Day, SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2019
Patron Award, SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2019
Purchase Award, 8th SD Governor's Exhibition 2019
Best of Show, SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2018
Best Overall Artist, SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2018
Patron Award, SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2018
People's Choice Best Artist, Boulder Plein Air Festival, Boulder, CO 2018
Best Nocturne, Boulder Plein Air Festival, Boulder, CO 2018
Best Industrial Scene, Bluffstrokes Paint-Out, Dubuque, IA 2017
Purchase Award, 7th SD Governor's Exhibition 2017
Patron Award (two), SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2017
Best of Show/First Place - Depot Art Center Plein Air Paint-Out, Littleton, CO 2016
Best Overall Artist - SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2016
Best Nocturne - SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2016
First Place Quick Draw - Driggs Digs Paint-Out, Driggs, ID 2014
Honorable Mention - Washington Pavilion, Sioux Falls, SD 2014
Best of Show - Silver City Paint Out, Silver City, SD 2013
People's Choice - Driggs Digs Paint-Out, Driggs, ID 2013
Best Representational Painting - ABH Group Show, Bone Creek Museum of Agrarian Art, David City, NE 2013
Best of Day - SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2013
Honorable Mention - Driggs Digs, Driggs, ID 2013
Best of Show - Madison Ranch Paint-Out, Rapid City, SD 2012
Best of Show - Silver City Paint Out, Silver City, SD 2012
Best of Show - SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2012
Purchase Award - SD Art for Public Buildings 2012
Curator's Choice Award - Group Show, Washington Pavilion, Sioux Falls, SD 2012
Best Overall Artist - SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2012
Best Quick Draw - SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2012
Best of Day - SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2012
Honorable Mention - South Dakota Governor's Exhibition 2012
Best of Show - Silver City Paint Out, Silver City, SD 2011
Purchase Award/Honorable Mention - South Dakota Governor's Exhibition 2010
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
Juried Members Exhibition, Tubac Center of the Arts, Tubac AZ 2025
Lost in the Woods, Group Plein Air Exhibition, Art House Gallery, Hot Springs SD 2025
Artists of the Black Hills 20th Annual Exhibition, Dahl Fine Arts Center, Rapid City, SD 2025
Summer Art Series, Spearfish Arts Center Gallery, Spearfish, SD 2024-2025
11th SD Governor's Biennial Exhibition - Group Exhibition 2025
Arizona Aqueous - Group Exhibition Tubac Center of the Arts, Tubac AZ 2025
Illuminated Noir - Solo Exhibition South Dakota Art Musuem, Brookings SD 2025
Members Group Exhibition Juried, Tubac Center of the Arts, Tubac AZ 2024
Edward Hopper House and Museum, Nyack NY Group Exhibition 2024
No. Plains Watercolor Society- Group Exhibitions Dahl Fine Arts Center Rapid City SD 2022-2025
Dark of Night/Light of Day - Solo Exhibition 2023 Art House Gallery, Hot Springs SD
10th SD Governor's Biennial Exhibition - Group Exhibition 2023
Night & Day, Dahl Fine Arts Center, Rapid City SD Solo Exhibition 2022
9th SD Governor's Biennial Exhibition - Group Exhibition 2021
Proof of Life II, Group Exhibition, Dahl Fine Arts Center, Rapid City, SD 2021
Edward Hopper House Member Exhibition, 2021
SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2019
8th SD Governor's Biennial Exhibition - Group Exhibition 2019
Artists of the Black Hills Annual Exhibition, multiple locations 2008-2024
SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2018
Boulder Plein Air Festival - Juried Artist, Boulder, CO 2018
GAR Gallery, Yankton Area Arts Council, Yankton, SD Solo Exhibition 2018
Edward Hopper House, Nyack, NY Solo Exhibition, 2017
Bluffstrokes Plein Air Paint-Out, Dubuque, IA 2017
SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2017
Telluride Plein Air Paint-Out, Juried Artist, Telluride, CO 2017
Edward Hopper House, Nyack, NY - Group Exhibition 2017
Dahl Fine Arts Center, Rapid City, SD - Group Exhibition 2016
Washington Pavilion, Sioux Falls - Group Exhibition 2016
7th SD Governor's Biennial Exhibition - Group Exhibition 2016
Telluride Plein Air Paint-Out, Juried Artist, Telluride, CO 2016
SouthPark Plein Air Arts Celebration, Fairplay, CO 2016
Edward Hopper House, Nyack, NY - Group Exhibition 2016
South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, Rapid City, SD - Solo Exhibition 2015
Dahl Fine Arts Center, Rapid City, SD - Group Exhibition 2015
Telluride Plein Air Paint-Out, Juried Artist, Telluride, CO 2015
Mondak Arts Center, Sydney, MT - Group Exhibition 2015
Glacier National Park Paint-Out, Juried Artist, Kalispell, MT 2015
Steamboat Springs Paint-Out, Steamboat Springs, CO 2015
Dahl Fine Arts Center, Rapid City, SD - "Respect" Group Exhibition 2015
Spearfish City Hall Gallery, Spearfish, SD - Solo Exhibition 2014
1875 Gallery, Sundance, WY - 4 Person Exhibition 2014
Washington Pavilion, Sioux Falls, SD - Group Exhibition 2014
Moab Plein Air Paint Out, Moab, UT 2014
Telluride Plein Air Paint Out, Juried Artist, Telluride, CO - 2014
Driggs Digs Plein Air Paint Out - 2014
Dahl Fine Arts Center, Rapid City, SD - Group Exhibition 2014
Bone Creek Museum of Agrarian Arts, David City, NE - Group Exhibition 2013
Northern State University, Aberdeen, SD - Group Exhibition 2013
Spearfish Arts Center, Spearfish, SD - Featured Artist 2013
Washington Pavilion, Sioux Falls, SD - Solo Exhibition 2013
Driggs Digs Plein Air Paint Out, Driggs, ID - 2013
Dahl Fine Arts Center, Rapid City, SD - Solo Exhibition 2013
Washington Pavilion, Sioux Falls, SD - Group Exhibition 2012
5th Annual SD Biennial Governor's Exhibition - Group Exhibition 2012
Presidents Gallery, Black Hills State University, Spearfish, SD - Solo Exhibition 2011
4th Annual SD Governor's Biennial Exhibition - Group Exhibition 2010
Masterworks by South Dakota Artists, SD Art Museum, Brookings, SD 1987
