Like many artists, my gateway into the world of self-expression was met with criticism rather than acclaim. As a second grader at St. Mary’s Elementary School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, I was sent to The Mother Superior for drawing while I was supposed to be reading. This negative experience might have effected me more deeply were it not for the happenstance that while being led to the office, I was taken through a hall where large oil paintings of a religious nature were hung. I was so affected by their realism that I vowed, then and there, to learn to draw and paint. 



I see myself as an interpreter, who is making a record of his observations. These observations are intuitive, as well as responsive to images that are composed of light and shadow, as well as color, shape and form. The satisfaction with my work comes when I can make a painting as minimal as possible and still capture the fundamental nature of the subject matter. To know what to paint and what to exclude is the challenge. This distillation helps reveal the essence of a painting. 



My current work comes from a desire to pursue and explore the legacy of still life painting. The classical aspect of composition and the tradition of still life, infused with my own perspective, is my primary goal. My ideas of art-about-art have become the focus of my work. It is not a new concept as artists have been borrowing from other artists throughout history. By referencing artists’ images with books and their titles they are employed to comment on or link to the objects within the painting. I makes this juxtaposition to place the familiar in a different context, combining diverse ideas to create unexpected compositions. As I continues this exploration, he’s challenged to take my work further both in content and subject matter. I see the refinement and depth that I wants from my work grow and evolve as I move closer to what is most important to me; to make a worthy painting that connects me with the world both past and present.

To view my work go to: http://www.guydiehl.com