Statement by J.K.
(Jimmy) Longacre
My passion as a painter
is in discovering the beauty to be found in the light and shade of
nature in all it's moods. Seeing well is the foundation of good
painting. The effort is always worth the reward, as it puts us in touch
with the reviving, restorative powers in God's awesome creation.
My attraction is to the
ephemeral properties of color affected by the quality of light falling
on the subject. When caught in paint, the result somehow resonates
in the beholder, causing a subjective realization of the beauty and
glory of being alive. We all bring different background
experiences to our perceptions, but it seems to be in the act of making
closure on simple harmonies that we spark the pleasurable connections to
a work of art.
To paint well is an
ongoing obsession that requires continual practice and study in the
attempt to arrive at a goal that is always just out of reach. I suppose
that's the attraction in doing it - and in seeing it.
Biography
Born in San Juan, Puerto
Rico, his family relocated in San Antonio, Texas. Growing up there, and
frequently visiting the Witte and McNay museums in his early years, he
was thrilled by the paintings and landscapes of the Onderdonks, Porfirio
Salinas and other artist. Recognition of his basic talent by his
parents, teaches and friends prompted increasing effort, and
development of his skills.
The paintings of the
French Impressionists were his earliest influence, followed by a
preference for the most structural, yet light-filled work of the
American Impressionists. After graduating from he University of Texas at
Austin, College of Fine Art, he completed a Master of Fine Arts degree
at Syracuse University.
During a career as a
freelance illustrator, he received many awards on local and
national levels, and taught art for five years on the UT fine art
faculty. His heart was never far from the fine art of painting, which he
continued, to practice and study.
After he and his wife
raised their two children, he transferred increasing amounts of time to
painting in the studio and out-of-doors. The challenge of paintings
"en plein air" has become an addiction to being out in nature
seeing and creating from from it's dazzling beauty.
Today, he and his wife,
live in the Texas hill country, near Dripping Springs.
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