Featured Artist Ron Craig

Fascinated by architecture, artist Ron Craig paints in a complex, meticulously detailed style. Enjoy his portfolio and visit his website to see more.

 

painting of the interior of a shipbuilding yard by Ron Craig

“Shop 11 Shipfitters” acrylic on canvas, 36” x 48”

 

I became an artist at an exceptionally young age. I began drawing and painting as a young child—determining, even then, that this was something that I was going to do.

 

painting of a ship in dock by Ron Craig

“Night Shift” acrylic on canvas, 30” x 24”

 

By the time I was about ten years old I had read a number of books on Frank Lloyd Wright. I would go to the library and check out books about him as well as drafting books.

 

painting of the outside of a building by Ron Craig

“Outside In” acrylic on canvas, 20” x 30”

 

I then taught myself architectural drawing and at age thirteen, I drew my first set of house plans. This led to a natural progression of viewing the works of master artists and studying their paintings—all of which pushed me to continue my artistic path.

 

painting of the interior of a building

“Inside Out” acrylic on canvas, 30” x 20”

 

I find I have a strong need to define complex things as well as a very mechanically-oriented mind. I’m intrigued with how things are built, needing to know and understand the process.

 

painting of the interior of a building by Ron Craig

“Reminiscence” acrylic on canvas, 48” x 36”

 

My painting process is similar to the building process. But instead of construction equipment and materials, I use only paints, brushes and my emotions. To paint it is to build it.

 

painting of cranes by Ron Craig

“Stands the Time” acrylic on board, 24” x 36”

 

Every time I pick up a brush, my technique leads me towards detailed accuracy. I begin by drawing the fundamental shapes. Then I add base colors, continuing to redraw over multiple layers to create definition and accuracy.

 

painting of the interior of a building by Ron Craig

“Multiplicity” acrylic on board, 24” x 18”

 

The process itself is quite long and tedious. I only reach the completion of a painting after I’ve created many, many layers.

 

painting of the interior of a darkened building by Ron Craig

“Night Light” acrylic on canvas, 40” x 30”

 

I choose to paint realistically for the challenge of portraying something as it is seen, and feel that a structure, when painted, should look mechanically correct. In order to do so, I devote a lot of time to study and research.

 

painting of the shadow of a palm tree on a building by Ron Craig

“Chasing Light” acrylic on board, 18” x 24”

 

As restricting as this end goal may seem, there’s actually a lot of freedom that comes with it. I can still choose to paint as my mind sees the image, and yet make it mechanically correct. I have a choice of subject matter, and can use color, light, shadows, medium and hues to express myself. I can also create a different perspective. All of this brings many challenges to creating my art, without which I could run the risk of losing my creativity.

 

painting of a decommissioned crane by Ron Craig

“Decommissioned” acrylic on canvas, 36” x 48”

 

My accomplishments as an artist are never enough. I always want to excel and take each painting to a new level—this keeps me driven to continue painting.

 

Artist Ron Craig invites you to follow him on Facebook and Instagram.

 

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YES PLEASE!

Comments

  1. Cosmas makunde says

    Unbelievable capture of structures.
    I appreciate the compelling focus and methodical creation of layers amidst shadows and perspective calling for attention.
    Thank you for a phenomenal grasp of the whole.

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