About David
Artist Statement
A San Francisco native and lifelong resident of the Bay Area, my paintings reflect my enjoyment of this beautiful area.
I am a representational painter, and want viewers to recognize what I paint, even where I have painted. However, I am more interested in the pictorial qualities of my paintings than in photorealism, so what I see becomes raw material for the interplay between representation and abstraction. A pattern of abstract forms and marks, when viewed together, become trees, grass, clouds; metaphors for a feeling, an experience, that is more real and more alive than a precise illustration of appearance.
A San Francisco native and lifelong resident of the Bay Area, my paintings reflect my enjoyment of this beautiful area.
I am a representational painter, and want viewers to recognize what I paint, even where I have painted. However, I am more interested in the pictorial qualities of my paintings than in photorealism, so what I see becomes raw material for the interplay between representation and abstraction. A pattern of abstract forms and marks, when viewed together, become trees, grass, clouds; metaphors for a feeling, an experience, that is more real and more alive than a precise illustration of appearance.
Biography
I wanted to be an artist when I was very young, and drew a lot, but there was little exposure to art and few opportunities for instruction. When I finished engineering school I took art classes for a while, but the gap between my aspirations and my skills overwhelmed me. After wandering many years in a creative desert, Art grabbed me by the throat and would not be denied. I started taking classes wherever I could find them and haven’t stopped drawing and painting since. I follow the advice of Apelles of Cos (painter to Alexander the Great), “no day without a line.”
I wanted to be an artist when I was very young, and drew a lot, but there was little exposure to art and few opportunities for instruction. When I finished engineering school I took art classes for a while, but the gap between my aspirations and my skills overwhelmed me. After wandering many years in a creative desert, Art grabbed me by the throat and would not be denied. I started taking classes wherever I could find them and haven’t stopped drawing and painting since. I follow the advice of Apelles of Cos (painter to Alexander the Great), “no day without a line.”
Resumé
One person exhibitions
2017 "The Woods are Lovely, Dark and Deep", Creative Framing and Gallery, Oakland, CA
2012 “Bay Area Landscapes”, Creative Framing and Gallery, Oakland, CA
2010 The Garage Gallery, Berkeley, CA
2010 “The Beautiful Bay Area and Beyond”, Steeltown Coffee and Tea, Pittsburg, CA
2009 “Bay Area Landscapes”, Creative Framing and Gallery, Oakland, CA
2007 "Bay Area Landscapes", Inside Outside Fitness, Oakland, CA
Selected group exhibitions
2021 "Around the Bay", Creative Framing and Gallery, Oakland, CA
2013 "World View: Landscape in Contemporary Art", Sun Gallery, Hayward, CA
2012 "Plein Air Pastorales", two person show with Jerry Carlin, The Garage Gallery, Berkeley, CA
2012, 2013 Collector Art Shop, Berkeley, CA
2011 “Bay Area Connected”, Creative Framing and Gallery, Oakland, CA
2010 MarinScapes, Escalle Winery, Larkspur, CA
2009 “Art on the Farm”, Bolinas Gallery, Bolinas, CA
2009 “Spirit of Drawing, Spirit of Color”, San Geronimo Valley Community Center, San Geronimo, CA
2008 “Visual Politics: Art & The American Experience”, Santa Cruz Art League, Santa Cruz, CA, juried by Peter Selz
2007 National Juried Exhibition, Berkeley Art Center, Berkeley, CA, juried by Peter Selz
2007 “The Mighty Oak”, San Geronimo Valley Community Center, San Geronimo, CA
2006 “Through the Eye of the Artist”, Expressions Gallery, Berkeley, CA
2006 “Catch 22”, Pro Arts Gallery, Oakland, CA
2005 “From the Artist’s Hand – Twenty-one Views of Light & Life”, Marin County Civic Center, San Rafael, CA
2004 “In Defense of Liberty”, Pro Arts Gallery, Oakland, CA
2003 “Ready for War”, University Galleries of Illinois State University, Normal, IL
Education
San Francisco Studio School
UC Berkeley Extension
San Francisco Art Institute Extension
California College of Art Extension
Private study with artists Jane Rosen, Connie Smith-Siegel, Robert Dvorak, and Joan Finton
One person exhibitions
2017 "The Woods are Lovely, Dark and Deep", Creative Framing and Gallery, Oakland, CA
2012 “Bay Area Landscapes”, Creative Framing and Gallery, Oakland, CA
2010 The Garage Gallery, Berkeley, CA
2010 “The Beautiful Bay Area and Beyond”, Steeltown Coffee and Tea, Pittsburg, CA
2009 “Bay Area Landscapes”, Creative Framing and Gallery, Oakland, CA
2007 "Bay Area Landscapes", Inside Outside Fitness, Oakland, CA
Selected group exhibitions
2021 "Around the Bay", Creative Framing and Gallery, Oakland, CA
2013 "World View: Landscape in Contemporary Art", Sun Gallery, Hayward, CA
2012 "Plein Air Pastorales", two person show with Jerry Carlin, The Garage Gallery, Berkeley, CA
2012, 2013 Collector Art Shop, Berkeley, CA
2011 “Bay Area Connected”, Creative Framing and Gallery, Oakland, CA
2010 MarinScapes, Escalle Winery, Larkspur, CA
2009 “Art on the Farm”, Bolinas Gallery, Bolinas, CA
2009 “Spirit of Drawing, Spirit of Color”, San Geronimo Valley Community Center, San Geronimo, CA
2008 “Visual Politics: Art & The American Experience”, Santa Cruz Art League, Santa Cruz, CA, juried by Peter Selz
2007 National Juried Exhibition, Berkeley Art Center, Berkeley, CA, juried by Peter Selz
2007 “The Mighty Oak”, San Geronimo Valley Community Center, San Geronimo, CA
2006 “Through the Eye of the Artist”, Expressions Gallery, Berkeley, CA
2006 “Catch 22”, Pro Arts Gallery, Oakland, CA
2005 “From the Artist’s Hand – Twenty-one Views of Light & Life”, Marin County Civic Center, San Rafael, CA
2004 “In Defense of Liberty”, Pro Arts Gallery, Oakland, CA
2003 “Ready for War”, University Galleries of Illinois State University, Normal, IL
Education
San Francisco Studio School
UC Berkeley Extension
San Francisco Art Institute Extension
California College of Art Extension
Private study with artists Jane Rosen, Connie Smith-Siegel, Robert Dvorak, and Joan Finton
