Oil on panel by Todd Bezold

At the University of Kentucky a major portion of my undergraduate art education was in sculpture with instruction by John Tuska and Jack Gronn.  My focus was the figure working in bronze, clay, or steel emphasizing contour and dynamic gestures.  Twice life-size structures, constructed from steel and found objects, were kinetic pieces requiring interaction by the observer or the wind. 

After college I maintained my art skills through self-portraiture in oils and clay.  In the Catskills I instructed Elderhostel Art History courses on “Nature in Art” and “The Hudson Valley School.”  Throughout this time I have also kept an interest in biology.  My later studies focused on plant biology working with the Cincinnati Zoo CREW labs to collect and preserve endangered wetland plant species.  During this time I attended landscape painting courses at the Cincinnati Art Academy and continued to work with art while obtaining a second undergraduate degree at Northern Kentucky University.

While working on a Masters in Plant Biology at the University of New Hampshire I attended a Biological Illustration course on the Isle of Shoals and began to seriously focus on oil painting of the figure and landscape through instruction with Michael Walek, Patricia Hardy, and Norman West.  My present goal is to develop observational and painterly skills in depicting the essence of light and atmosphere and how this defines space and distant perspective, while simplifying the forms that convey these elements.

www.artfoureyes.com

10"x10"