John Morfis

Toy Texas Ranger

2018

A trompe l'oeil oil painting of a child's beach shovel. Morfis' incredible realism contrasts the quaint illustration on the shovel. Framed dimensions: 23.5 x 17.5 inches John Morfis was born in Bayville, Long Island in 1976. His humble beginnings made pursuing a career in art difficult and paradoxically necessary. Fixated on making things aesthetically pleasing, John made an extreme departure from his family life when he chose to base his life on art. Surrounded by mechanics, welders, and otherwise trade workers John had a tough time expressing his interest in a world much more utilitarian and much less expressive and impractical. With an extraordinary desire to be an artist and a grant awarded, John was able to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a concentration in painting from the University of Hartford in 1998. While there John studied oil painting under American realist Stephen Brown...

An oil painting of a tomato still life. On a neutral background sits a larger tomato and 6 smaller tomatoes still attached to a vine. The two groups are divided by a diagonal slash of branch. Painting dimensions: 6 x 13 inches Framed dimensions: 12 x 19 inches John Morfis was born in Bayville, Long Island in 1976. His humble beginnings made pursuing a career in art difficult and paradoxically necessary. Fixated on making things aesthetically pleasing, John made an extreme departure from his family life when he chose to base his life on art. Surrounded by mechanics, welders, and otherwise trade workers John had a tough time expressing his interest in a world much more utilitarian and much less expressive and impractical. With an extraordinary desire to be an artist and a grant awarded, John was able to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a concentration in painting from the University of Hartford in 1998. While there John studied oil painting under American realist Stephen Brown...

American realist painter Carl Bretzke is particularly adept at nocturne scenes which ooze in darkness, reminiscent of Edward Hopper. Bretzke remarks: “What most people don’t notice i...

Frame Dimensions 30 x 42in American realist painter Carl Bretzke is particularly adept at nocturne scenes which ooze in darkness, reminiscent of Edward Hopper. Bretzke remarks: “Wh...

This is an oil painting, in the style of "Trompe l-oeil" of an antique hand drill, on a grey background. Painted by American contemporary painter, ...

An oil painting of an antique tool, a Garden Dibble, which is a long stick-like tool used to make holes for seeds, to make sure they are sufficiently buried in the soil without damage. This particular object that Morfis chose to paint has a wooden handle, and a metal point. The dibber rests atop a nail, against a gray wall. Bright studio-light casts a sharp shadow directly beneath the tool. Painted in the academic realist style of "trompe-l'oeil" which is French for "trickery of the eye". BIOGRAPHY John Morfis was born in Glen Cove, Long Island in 1976. His humble beginnings made pursuing a career in art difficult and paradoxically necessary. Fixated on making things aesthetically pleasing, John made an extreme departure from his family life when he chose to base his life on art. Surrounded by mechanics, welders, and otherwise trade workers John had a tough time expressing his interest in a world much more utilitarian and much less expressive and impractical. With an extraordinary desire to be an artist and a grant awarded, John was able to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a concentration in painting from the University of Hartford in 1998. While there John studied oil painting under American realist Stephen Brown. John’s first solo show took place in 2007 at the Ellen Traut Collection Gallery in Hartford, CT and was a near sell out. Since then John has had success up and down the northeastern coast of the United States working with various galleries and collectors. His work has also appeared in various group shows at the New Britain Museum of American Art in Connecticut. ARTIST STATEMENT Each painting, although a portrait of a tired hand...

Wonderful mid century still life composition with Brass vessel, apples, turnip and pepper by Charles Kingham (American, 1895-1984), c. 1940's. The artist uses a bold color palette an...

For Elizabeth Barlow, painting the intricate details of a flower is a meditation that promotes a deep reverence for all living things. The artist imbues her works with a radiant ligh...

For Elizabeth Barlow, painting the intricate details of a flower is a meditation that promotes a deep reverence for all living things. The artist imbues her works with a radiant ligh...

Contemporary figurative painter Andrew S. Conklin creates a composition of portraiture and a still life arrangement presented in an interior scene. The artist applies traditional realist paint work to an environment which references modern subject matter. Rendering directly from life, Conklin imparts an original artwork that is imbued with narrative and character. This piece is painted in oils on linen, hand signed by the artist and ready to be displayed. Andrew S. Conklin, a native of Chicago, Illinois, is a visual artist, painter and draftsman. He studied painting and design at Chicago’s American Academy of Art and painting and printmaking at the National Academy of Design School in New York City. Conklin received additional instruction from portraitist Aaron Shikler and painter and illustrator David Levine. He holds an MFA from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, CA. Conklin’s figurative paintings have been exhibited throughout the USA and have won him a number of major awards. He has shown work at the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters in NYC, The Terra Museum of American Art, Fairfield University, and the National Academy of Design, where he received a Julius Hallgarten Prize. A three-time recipient of the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grant, Conklin has also won a John F. and Anna Lee Stacey...

Still-Life, oil on linen, 40 x 30

Still-Life, oil on linen, 36 x 24