DAN YOUNG
DAN YOUNG
Dan Young was born in Denver and grew up in rural western Colorado. His experiences camping, fishing, and exploring throughout the Rocky Mountains as a child have been a strong influence on his work. He attended Colorado Institute of Art, hoping to find a direction for his talent. After graduation he moved to Dallas Texas to pursue the commercial art field. Even with a successful illustration career, the landscape of his youth was always calling him back to Colorado. He returned in 1989 to begin painting full time.
Young enjoys painting the rural life of the west, the ranches that dot the mountain valleys and river bottoms. He clings strongly to the importance of painting from life. He tries to spend as much time as possible painting on location, trying to capture his love and appreciation of nature on canvas. He has worked diligently trying to convey the feel of the moment in his paintings. “For me it is not about the details of a scene. It’s the emotion of the moment that I’m after”, states Young.
Young’s work has been exhibited in many prestigious shows such as: Arts in the Embassies, American Embassy, Brussels Belgium; Arts in the Embassies, American Embassy, Athens Greece; Maynard Dixon Country, Mount Carmel, Utah; American Master’s at SCNY, Salmagundi Art Club, New York New York; Small Works Great Wonders, National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, Oklahoma City Oklahoma; Western Visions Miniatures and More, National Museum of Wildlife, Jackson Wyoming; Coors Western Art Exhibit, National Western Stock Show, Denver Colorado; Artist for Colorado’s Youth, Colorado History Museum, Denver Colorado; Biennial Invitational, Bradford Brinton Memorial Museum, Bighorn Wyoming; American Art in Miniature, Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa Oklahoma
Young’s work has been featured in: Southwest Art Magazine; Aspen Magazine; Art of the West Magazine; Western Art Collector Magazine; Plein Air Magazine; Cowboys and Indians Magazine; 5280 Magazine; American Art Collector Magazine
ARTIST STATEMENT
As an artist I feel you need to have a voice or vision that is true to who you are. I continue that search every time I step up to a blank canvas. I try to explain in paint how I relate to the scene. I'm trying to make a painting not a copy of what I see. It’s not about details of the scene that I’m after. I’m trying to capture the feel of the place. It might be a cold winter morning or a brisk fall day. If I can say that, I feel I’ve made a successful painting. I'm trying to connect with my viewer on a emotional level.