Russell Edward Vanecek

I received my Masters of Fine Art from The Pennsylvania State University in 1980 and have been an art teacher for 35 years.

I've had solo exhibitions in private and university galleries, as well as Art festivals and several commissions. 

The pleasure I derive from observing nature is the complexity of color and texture. Time, light of day, and seasons of the year adds to the experience. People, animals and birds living and moving in nature are part of my daily observations. These combinations are captured in my memory as fleeting images. It could be colors at sunset, birds in a tree during fall or bicycling in the park. My primary medium is oil paint applied in layers on both canvas and wood panels. I also use acrylic, watercolors, pastels, charcoal, pen & ink and digital mediums.

I refer to images of native birds. What interest me are their specific shapes and my impressions of their movement in nature. What gets embedded in my mind is a collage of shapes, colors and textures that are both sharp details and easily blurred blending into each other. Literal or precise rendering no longer becomes important. I end up trying to express the gesture and dynamic motion of life. Life is once clearly observed and focused then seemingly fades or transforms.