Meet David E Garrison | Fine Artist of two-dimensional art

We had the good fortune of connecting with David E Garrison and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi David, how does your business help the community?

All through my school years I’ve dreamed of becoming an “ARTIST” ! It was my high school art teach who told me I could make a living from my interest in art. So, I started the search for the best art school and found it with the American Academy of Art, in Chicago.
At that school they taught how to understand the basics of creating two dimentional art. The following steps of four years of study took me to the point of being ready to face the world with my art. WHAT AN ADVENTURE OF MORE THEN 50 YEARS OF CREATING BEAUTY and enjoying the process of being successful as a business.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
As I developed my ability to create, inspiring and beautiful art, as I saw the world to be, I did struggle with sales and recognition. Without recgnition you’re just one of billions of artist out there who’s also struggling!

I had been experimenting with a French medium called Conte’ Crayon. A simple compressed pigment that included a clay ingredient. The Clay ingredient set it apart from pastels because I could take a brush an apply water to the surface of the canvas that had Conte’ already applied to it. The water melted the Conte’ Crayon into different values. This was a wonderful discovery! No other artist had tried this idea. So, I took the idea with other experimenting such as using a board insted of canvas. With the board I applied Gesso to the surface. I found by using a palette knife an interesting texture could be formed. The more thinly applied layers of Gesso the more texture. This was becoming inspiring to see the Conte’ Crayon take on a whole new look. Then as I used the water I could create different atmospheres to the subjucts I wanted to paint.
I discoveried that the paper towel could be more effective than the brush to capture unusual effects on the Gessoed board surface, such as wetting the surface first then go to work with the Conte” Crayon.
The amount of water versus how much Conte’ Crayon I use is determined by the subject matter. The American Indian and the Civil War has become favorite subjucts. The Gesso textured surface creates a antique quality when the Conte” Crayon is applied and then a wet paper towel is used to bring out the textured cracks to a persons face.

The success of this discovered process has extended even to creating large murals as well as smaller art work. I had a commission to paint a western theme on a wall that was 27 ft long and 7 ft high. By using a trowel I covered the entire wall with Gesso and used the same process as I would on a smaller framed Conte’ work. 35 years ago I created the first mural with Conte’ Crayon.

The most famous Conte’ Crayon painting I have ever created is of Abraham Lincoln. With the manyGesso textured areas and the Conte’ Crayon I used, I was able to capture Abe’s face with all it’s glory! This one single piece of art work I have received more awards and recognition that I had been needing.

The development of this intriguing medium has continued. Just a couple years ago I was trying other ideas with the Conte’ Crayon and discovered I can use acrylic paint washes over the finished Conte work. This has added a new dimension to the overall look of what I’m trying to do. The colors can add impact of the finished painting, greatly. Speaking of the finished art work; I varnish the surface, no need for glass protection.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Since I run a couple miles each morning in a nearby park. I would invite any visitor to join me. Tennis is my sport even at this age, so we could have a round or two before lunch!

I would invite them to a fun train trip to Chicago for the week to check out the museums and lake front park. The many shops in the Loop are a highlight of anyone’s visit. The coming concerts are always watched and a good way to relax.

Burlington also has great night spots: The Washington is fun for great music.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Much like Vincent Van Gogh, I’ve been in luck with having a brother willing to step in and help when the going was tough. For example: I had run out of money when the third year of art school came to a close. My brother offered to pay for the fourth year and it turned out to be my best and most important year of studies of portraits and figures.

Website: www.david-garrison.com

Instagram: davidgarrisonstudios

Facebook: davidgarrisonportraits

Image Credits
Images of David Garrison, Artist.