For years, John Taft was a designer/art director in Manhattan. “During that time, my wife and I would regularly visit museums and galleries, and I’d draw from the figure down in SoHo most Tuesdays,” says Taft, adding that the practice fed a growing desire to paint.
Covered Ridge, oil on linen, 17 x 38"
“It was the drives, however, through the upstate countryside to visit family in western New York, that provided the answer to my question, ‘What should I paint?’”, the artist continues. “The undulating hills, clouds, streams, trees and light passages we’d pass, which at times became a creative living symphony of rhythms, colors and notes, were moving.”
Peak Season, oil on linen, 14 x 18"
Several trips across the country during his college years in California had already exposed Taft to the grand American landscape, compounding a fascination with the West he had since his youth. This led to his and his wife’s decision to relocate their young family in 2004 to Colorado where he began to pursue painting in earnest.
Spring Sonata, oil on linen, 25 x 30"
“Most of my work is created in the studio, with inspiration beginning, of course, on location: painting, sketching, photographing and note taking,” says Taft. “I try to paint, as I say, what the ‘eye hears,’ which to me means to ‘listen’ to what I am seeing.”
Taft will be featured in the Bighorn Rendezvous Exhibit, taking place July 9 through Augsgust 27 at the Brinton Museum in Big Horn, Wyoming. —
Want to See More?
(302) 746-2651 | studio@johntaft.com www.johntaft.com
Represented by Claggett/Rey Gallery
216 Main Street, Ste. C100 | Edwards, CO 81632
(970) 476-9350 | www.claggettrey.com
Instagram: @johntaft.studio
Powered by Froala Editor
