London Thornberry
My passion is expressing emotion through color and shape. My finalized paintings are done in oil. My preliminary color studies include watercolor while occasionally integrating gouache and acrylic. My sketches are done with ink pens, pencil and charcoal. These various tools give me the ability to explore moods at their very core.
My work is somewhat eclectic... it's a blend of Realism and Impressionism, with the occasional Abstraction. I don't like to limit myself.
Which artists have influenced me the most? NC Wyeth (Storytelling), Claude Monet (Impressionism), Thomas Cole (Hudson River School Landscape Realism), Frederic Remington (Nighttime Scenes), "Wolfy" Reithermann of Disney Studios (2D line Art Illustration)... and Norman Rockwell (faith and values). I marvel at the creativity of each of these masters.
Every painting has a title and a theme. Almost all have faith and inspiration woven into the subject matter. I enjoy painting water scenes (waterfalls, seascapes, ponds) and scenes that evoke peace and tranquility.
Hopefully, you and I share some common interests.
My artistic tendencies? Well, my palette tends to emphasize strong colors. Where possible I like to create detail as an illusion that is the result of colors merging. I think that comes from studying the Impressionists as a young boy and having spent a good part of my life in the color reproduction industry as an adult.
Occasionally I work on portraits, too. Those I usually pursue with charcoal. I love the feeling of connectedness that I get when I smooth the charcoal by hand. It's something primal... it's hard to explain.
I strive to evoke a message of hope. There's too much negativity out there so you probably won't find me painting much in the way of ominous or brooding subject matter.
Art can be a glorious source of inspiration. It certainly has been for me. The vast majority of what you see in my gallery was painted during the pandemic -- in the midst of fear and panic I found joy and wonder through artistic expression. Painting and illustrating were my way of "fighting back" against an unseen nemesis and strengthening my faith in God.
My approach? Well, as I consider potential subjects for my work I take a panoramic view of the world from an optimist's perspective. I'm always looking for the fingerprints of God. The wonderful thing is that those fingerprints are everywhere. Hopefully that gives you a bit of a hint about what makes me tick. Thank you so much for visiting my site. I really hope you enjoy my work.
God bless and welcome to my world...
