Ron Hicks Art

Born in Columbus, Ohio, in 1965, Ron Hicks was an avid artist from an early age. Hicks began his formal studies in art at the Columbus College of Art and Design in Ohio. Hicks contin...

Ron Hick's (US based) "Profit Prophet" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts an impasto rendering of a Black male model. Ron Hick's works have been characterized as a blend of representational art and impressionism. Some critics have compared them to paintings by Rembrandt and Daumier. The 40-year old artist translates his own moody visions with a muted palette and rarely uses pure color. He particularly favors the variety he finds in gray. "Gray allows me to capture atmosphere, mood, and layers of emotion," he says. "Gray sets the tone for the rest of the painting." Shelves in the artist's studio are lined with art books about Nicolai Fechin, James Whistler and William Merritt Chase. There are also volumes featuring Hicks' main muses John Singer Sargent, Edgar Degas and Diego Velazquez. As an artist, his philosophy involves guiding the viewer through a painting, much like his artistic idols, by striking a balance between revealing too little and not enough detail. "It's a very delicate balance," Hicks says. It's no surprise that Ron Hicks spurns the academic approach to figure painting, which requires exactness-too stiff and boring, he says. It's also a method that can yield models with pained expressions. His creative process involves explaining an idea for a pose to a model and then waiting for her to strike a comfortable facsimile. "The best postures are the ones that just happen; then the models stay comfortable," he says. "I don't want to paint a pose that is unnatural and has nothing to do with actual life." If one asks Hicks about his favorite subject matter he replies without hesitation, "figures and interiors." But he quickly qualifies "figures" by saying that painting them is really about painting shapes of color. "I am a shape guy. By that I mean I see things more in terms of shape rather than the objects or people," he says. "Everything is about shape, medium shape vs. large shape, lighter shape vs. darker shape." Hicks has been interested in art since he was 4 years old and growing up in Columbus, Ohio. His mother pursued art as a hobby and took correspondence courses. The young Hicks would scan the critiques of his mother's works and then trace some of the assignments himself. As his talents became known in his neighborhood, he was called on to draw things for community events. In high school, he learned how to use his skills as a weapon. When the class bullies hazed him, for example, he drew outrageous caricatures of them. He still recalls entertaining his school friends with a sketch of the class bully he depicted with enormous ears like the cartoon elephant Dumbo. After high school, Hicks attended classes at the Columbus College of Art and Design on scholarship. He eventually moved west where he graduated from the Colorado Institute of Art and studied with Quang Ho at the Art Students League there. As a class monitor for Ho, he spent extra time talking and listening to him. Today he credits his teacher with exposing him to a new way of seeing. "A light bulb was turned on. I started seeing things in terms of shapes and edges, texture, line and color," he says. "I no longer saw painting as a way of just transferring information; I started looking at what I wanted to say in a piece. After graduating from college, Hicks worked for a time as a freelance illustrator. He also worked as a manager for a satellite dish...

Ron Hick's (US based) "Amber Eve" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts an impasto rendering of two models standing closely together in a tender embrace. Framed size: 55" H x 44" W Ron Hick's works have been characterized as a blend of representational art and impressionism. Some critics have compared them to paintings by Rembrandt and Daumier. The 40-year old artist translates his own moody visions with a muted palette and rarely uses pure color. He particularly favors the variety he finds in gray. "Gray allows me to capture atmosphere, mood, and layers of emotion," he says. "Gray sets the tone for the rest of the painting." Shelves in the artist's studio are lined with art books about Nicolai Fechin, James Whistler and William Merritt Chase. There are also volumes featuring Hicks' main muses John Singer Sargent, Edgar Degas and Diego Velazquez. As an artist, his philosophy involves guiding the viewer through a painting, much like his artistic idols, by striking a balance between revealing too little and not enough detail. "It's a very delicate balance," Hicks says. It's no surprise that Ron Hicks spurns the academic approach to figure painting, which requires exactness-too stiff and boring, he says. It's also a method that can yield models with pained expressions. His creative process involves explaining an idea for a pose to a model and then waiting for her to strike a comfortable facsimile. "The best postures are the ones that just happen; then the models stay comfortable," he says. "I don't want to paint a pose that is unnatural and has nothing to do with actual life." If one asks Hicks about his favorite subject matter he replies without hesitation, "figures and interiors." But he quickly qualifies "figures" by saying that painting them is really about painting shapes of color. "I am a shape guy. By that I mean I see things more in terms of shape rather than the objects or people," he says. "Everything is about shape, medium shape vs. large shape, lighter shape vs. darker shape." Hicks has been interested in art since he was 4 years old and growing up in Columbus, Ohio. His mother pursued art as a hobby and took correspondence courses. The young Hicks would scan the critiques of his mother's works and then trace some of the assignments himself. As his talents became known in his neighborhood, he was called on to draw things for community events. In high school, he learned how to use his skills as a weapon. When the class bullies hazed him, for example, he drew outrageous caricatures of them. He still recalls entertaining his school friends with a sketch of the class bully he depicted with enormous ears like the cartoon elephant Dumbo. After high school, Hicks attended classes at the Columbus College of Art and Design on scholarship. He eventually moved west where he graduated from the Colorado Institute of Art and studied with Quang Ho at the Art Students League there. As a class monitor for Ho, he spent extra time talking and listening to him. Today he credits his teacher with exposing him to a new way of seeing. "A light bulb was turned on. I started seeing things in terms of shapes and edges, texture, line and color," he says. "I no longer saw painting as a way of just transferring information; I started looking at what I wanted to say in a piece. After graduating from college, Hicks worked for a time as a freelance illustrator. He also worked as a manager for a satellite dish...

“Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks so innately, we react and respond to what’s in our heart” states figurative artist Ron Hicks about his latest exhibit, The Heart ...

“Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks so innately, we react and respond to what’s in our heart” states figurative artist Ron Hicks about his latest exhibit, The Heart ...

Ron Hick's (US based) "When Abigail Comes" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts an impasto rendering of a young infant awake and swaddled in a dark gray shape on a back...

Ron Hick's (US based) "The Bazaar Contemplator" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a impasto portrait of a young man, wearing a white button down and jacket, with dow...

Ron Hick's (US based) "Tale of Two Liz's" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a impasto portrait of two feminine figures facing each other tenderly as they stand in fr...

Ron Hick's (US based) "Veiled" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a impasto portrait of an ambiguous feminine face framed with dark locks of hair as it emerges from a...

Ron Hick's (US based) "Untitled" is an original, handmade oil painting that depicts a impasto portrait of an ambiguous feminine face with closed eyes and framed with dark brown hair ...

Ron Hick's (US based) "Dawn's Soft Murmur" is an oil painting that depicts a impasto portrait of an ambiguous feminine face, framed with black hair, emerging from a heavily patterned...

Ron Hick's (US based) "Adrift" is an oil painting that depicts a impasto portrait of an ambiguous face, and white background rich with its patterning of orange, purple, and pink Ron...