Keith Emerling Bio

The first painting I can remember doing was when I was in grade school, my family still has it and I still like it. The next time I picked up a brush was in college. I painted all the time, starting with abstract work, some being diptychs that were 5x7 and 8x10 feet in size. Later I began painting smaller and becoming more representational, eventually painting mostly still life.

 

I painted into my 30's and then stopped entirely. It took me too long to complete a painting, the last one taking six months. At the time, I was already a private chef and continued to work in that profession for a total of ten years. Then I became a commercial and fine art photographer for almost another decade. I came back to cooking for another five years as a recipe creator and author. When I finally returned to painting, I did so with a passion.

 

I now paint rather quickly, which is very helpful in painting from life, especially when working en plein air or with flowers and people. The connection is more than just with the subject matter. The process of creating results in personal growth and captures evidence of beauty in the world. Painting is full of discovery and is a puzzle of interlocking pieces that eventually reveals a finished piece.

 

This process maps the growth of me as an artist as well as a person. It is living connection that keeps me making and remaking myself. In that remaking I hope to discover an aliveness and sense of who I am.

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