Featured Artist of the Month : Frank Wilson Jun. 2025 | TheArtList - Art & Photo Calls for Visual Artists and Photographers.

Frank Wilson

Paradise, California, USA

Photography was my minor at the Art Institute Of Boston from 1968 to 1971. I retired my film darkroom in the late 1970's to pursue my fine art painting full time. Once again, I took up photography in the digital age. I think that my success as a photographer is because I look through my lenses with the eyes of an artist. I photograph places and things that speak to me personally. Photography, like painting, comes from within.

I have been a full time professional artist since 1971. My formal art education took place at the School of Practical Art and the Art Institute of Boston where I majored in Editorial Illustration and minored in Photography. I continued my fine art education with further studies under Marko Lolo Marchi and Steven Yankopolis.

ARTIST'S STATEMENT:

The beauty, power and majesty of God's creation serve as the cornerstone for my artistic and photographic endeavors. Each sunrise, each delicate flower, and every towering mountain speaks of His magnificent and intricate design. Capturing these moments through my lens allows me to reflect on the profound artistry of the Creator Himself. It is within the natural world that I find endless inspiration, a source of awe that fuels my creativity and drives me to immortalize His works in my own creations. Every click of the shutter, every stroke of the brush, is a humble tribute to the divine craftsmanship that is ever-present in nature's splendor.

How and when did you start creating art?

My family says I was born with a crayon in my mouth. But it was from the 8^th grade onward that I seriously took up oil painting and sculpture. I won numerous art awards throughout high school and went on to study at the Art Institute of Boston, where photography was my minor.

What media and genres do you work in?

I work primarily in oils and gouache (an opaque watercolor). My subject matter for both my fine art and my photography Is the natural world. I’ve always been an active participant in hiking and mountaineering.

Who or what are your influences?

Thomas Hill and Albert Birdstar The painters of Yosemite, are my major influences in painting. In photography, I’m greatly inspired by the work of the legendary Ansel Adams.

What was your inspiration for
Stormy Maine Coast Panorama
?

I have had a lifelong love affair with the ocean and visited the main coast often while I was a student at the Art Institute of Boston. My wife and I even spent a two-week honeymoon visiting the wild coast of Maine. In the 1970s I lived for seven years right on the open Atlantic Ocean out on Eastern Point in East Gloucester MA. I never grew tired of studying the varied moods of the ocean which has been the subject matter of many paintings and photographs.

Describe your creative process?

I paint and photograph those subjects that create a strong emotional response in me. It’s not uncommon for me to get up at 5:00 AM in order to photograph the sunrise coming up over the sea.

What are you working on currently?

I’m continuing my oil painting series of Lake Tahoe in Northern California, as well as post-processing many nature photographs that I took in earlier years.

What are your near/long term goals as an artist?

After over 60 years as a full-time artist, my goal is to keep producing quality paintings and photographs. Having produced over 4,000 paintings and thousands of Photographs and winning many awards over my career, it's what I get up for each morning!