Featured Artist Ron Craig

Fascinated by architecture, artist Ron Craig paints in a complex, meticulously detailed style. Enjoy his portfolio and visit his website to see more.

 

 

I became an artist at an exceptionally young age. I began drawing and painting as a young child—determining, even then, that this was something that I was going to do.

 

 

By the time I was about ten years old I had read a number of books on Frank Lloyd Wright. I would go to the library and check out books about him as well as drafting books.

 

 

I then taught myself architectural drawing and at age thirteen, I drew my first set of house plans. This led to a natural progression of viewing the works of master artists and studying their paintings—all of which pushed me to continue my artistic path.

 

 

I find I have a strong need to define complex things as well as a very mechanically-oriented mind. I’m intrigued with how things are built, needing to know and understand the process.

 

 

My painting process is similar to the building process. But instead of construction equipment and materials, I use only paints, brushes and my emotions. To paint it is to build it.

 

 

Every time I pick up a brush, my technique leads me towards detailed accuracy. I begin by drawing the fundamental shapes. Then I add base colors, continuing to redraw over multiple layers to create definition and accuracy.

 

 

The process itself is quite long and tedious. I only reach the completion of a painting after I’ve created many, many layers.

 

 

I choose to paint realistically for the challenge of portraying something as it is seen, and feel that a structure, when painted, should look mechanically correct. In order to do so, I devote a lot of time to study and research.

 

 

As restricting as this end goal may seem, there’s actually a lot of freedom that comes with it. I can still choose to paint as my mind sees the image, and yet make it mechanically correct. I have a choice of subject matter, and can use color, light, shadows, medium and hues to express myself. I can also create a different perspective. All of this brings many challenges to creating my art, without which I could run the risk of losing my creativity.

 

 

My accomplishments as an artist are never enough. I always want to excel and take each painting to a new level—this keeps me driven to continue painting.

 

Artist Ron Craig invites you to follow him on Facebook and Instagram.

 

Want to stay current on cutting edge business articles from Artsy Shark, plus artist features, and an invitation to the next Call for Artists? Subscribe to our twice-monthly Updates, and get a free e-book on Where to Sell Art Online right now!