Today we’d like to introduce you to Chuck McPherson.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Chuck. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I am a practicing fine artist; more specifically, a Watercolorist. My style has been called “intuitive” in interviews because of my seemingly carefree approach ~ but there’s a lot of mileage behind that look! Most artists consider watercolor to be the most difficult medium, but I’ve learned to dance with her and enjoy the journey with all its “happy accidents”.
A San Diego native, my formal art education started at San Diego State University and continued at the prestigious Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. For over 30 years I was a designer and illustrator. Today, I paint full time and my artwork is well recognized with hundreds of awards from juried shows. I am often asked to juror art shows and lead workshops and paint-outs.
Internationally, I hold three Signature Memberships with The San Diego Watercolor Society, National Watercolor Society and Western Federation of Watercolor Societies. A Signature in watercolor is like a PhD in medicine.
I have served on the Board of Directors for the San Diego Museum of Art Artists Guild, Foothills Art Association, The San Diego Watercolor Society and National Watercolor Society.
My artwork is in collections around the world and has hung locally at the Oceanside Museum of Art, the San Diego History Center, Marston House Museum, Muckenthaler Cultural Center and the Olaf Wieghorst Museum and Western Heritage Center.
My transparent watercolor, “The Art Critics”, was selected as the February 2018 cover of The Art of Watercolour Magazine (Issue 29) distributed in 36 countries. In July, I am in an invitational exhibition of San Diego County Watercolor Artists in conjunction with the American Watercolor Society’s 151st Traveling Exhibition, at the California Center for the Arts, Escondido (CCAE) Museum.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I have had a very successful ride… mostly smooth… until 2008 when the bottom fell out of the Graphic Design trade and most other small business. The struggle moving forward is translating the tactile facets of what artisans do into a global market where “touch” is no longer a sales tool. I do a fair share of Social Media, with Facebook being the lion’s share of my return. I work it daily to stay visible with my audience and potential buyers. Nearly ALL my business is done through word of mouth, which includes teaching, shows, painting workshops and public performances. Promotional hours do cut into my painting time, but with a minor in Journalism, I am comfortable with that left/right brain balance… unusual in an Artist.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
As a Fine Artist, I concentrate on painting things I like or relate to. That can range from animals to boats, locations to fantasized scenes like my “Cutting Edge” artwork. Using this approach, I replace drawing with laying out using blue painter’s tape. I cut and tear it into shapes that I place on my surface to build a composition, much like blocking in a subject as an oil painter would. Placing shapes next to another, another next to those, I eventually have an image that matches what I see in my head. Why blue painter’s tape? Well, I often start my paintings with a 6-inch brush loaded with color! Those colors travel across the surface and the tape holds out the shapes I’ve designed. Once the paint dries, I remove it in stages and begin detailing the subject ~ often re-taping objects ~ until I come to a completed rendering of my vision.
The drawback to this technique is time. My “Cutting Edge” subjects usually require 6 to ten hours of layout with 60 to 100 hours of painting. But you can’t see it done anywhere else.
What were you like growing up?
I was raised pretty much in an Ozzie n’ Harriet vein (Millennials may have to Google that). While very much an introvert in most things, I participated in activities of the day like Scouting. As an accomplished, I did raise in the ranks through Eagle and Order of the Arrow. My Mother nurtured my artistic side, my Father very active in shaping me into a good man.
As I entered college at San Diego State, the world opened up with arms out and MAN, did I hug it back! While taking a full 18 units of study, I worked most years at The Daily Aztec newspaper on campus. I earned SO much about professional graphics and writing there… and deadlines! Oh, the deadlines. Which served me well when I attended the Art Center College of design with its demanding standards.
I spent the next few decades as an in-demand designer with companies like Network Music BMG and Universal Music where I created packaging, collateral and marketing materials for the production music industry. Loved that job for expanding my skills and for helping me bring my extrovert out, which serves me well today in my public performance painting.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://chuckmcphersonart.com/
- Email: chuckmcpherson@yahoo.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chuck.mcpherson.39
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/chuckmcpherson
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/user/cr8tveboy
Getting in touch: SDVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
