Richard Lewis
Statement
I’m a painter who plays with color, light, and making marks while looking for a way to understand our world.
While I usually have something in mind when I begin, I expect that once the painting comes alive, it will have ideas of its own. From that moment, my job is to help it along and not get in its way. Each brushstroke, each touch of color either interferes or enhances the picture’s direction. I’m no master; it’s trial and error. There’s nothing better than when a little mark that was just a test ends up having a big impact.
As a student, I was lucky to have exceptional teachers; many were abstract artists. I know I upset some of them by insisting on painting in a language that everyone knows and can understand. And ignoring them when they encouraged me to make pictures on a grand scale. To this day, I work relatively small, hoping the viewer comes closer to examine my picture, to slow down and look.
Despite their modest size, I usually have plenty of big, important ideas while working on my paintings. Whenever I lose my head like that, I just need to remind myself that inside I’m still Richie — down in the basement with his chemistry set — trying to invent a sparkler.
Biography
Richard Lewis was born in 1955 in Queens, New York. After studying at the University of Wisconsin and Franconia College, he received a BFA in Visual Arts from Purchase College. Following a stint as an art editor and picture researcher in Manhattan, he received his MFA in Painting from the University of Michigan.
For almost four decades, Richard Lewis taught studio art and digital media at Marist College, guiding students through drawing, painting (traditional and digital), animation, and senior projects. His art history courses included travel to Italy, England, France, Holland, Greece, Turkey, and Japan. Alongside his teaching, he chaired the department for more than twenty years and helped establish the college’s campus in Florence, Italy. With his wife, he co-authored “The Power of Art,” an introductory textbook that is in its third revised edition.
In 2022, he retired and now enjoys the freedom to focus entirely on his painting. He lives and works in the Hudson Valley.
Author
Lewis Art Café: an online salon of art, artists & travel
The Power of Art: an introduction to the appreciation of art
Digital Media Foundations: a guide to digital media for artists and designers