One word that comes to mind when thinking of work by this artist is serene. He is famous for his paintings of Martha’s Vineyard. My favorite works of his are of the vineyard during the evening time, sometimes after a light rain, the sun and sky turn to a purplish color contrasting nicely with the blue of the water.
Artist’s website: http://www.ovidward.com/index.shtml
On line and land based galleries: Wellesley Hills, MA. http://www.azfineartgallery.com/artists1.asp?collectionID=56
mediums used: acrylics
surfaces used: board
low price range: $1200 for originals, prints from $100 on his website
high price range: $15,000 for original commission of a very large boat
The artist enjoys painting coastal and boat landscapes. People enjoy his painting of the boats and if some thing is not right with a particular boat, they aren’t afraid to tell him so. The artist enjoys rendering these works based on photographs he has taken.
The artist has worked in the commercial art industry for decades for the Chrysler corporation as an automobile designer.
The artist was born in 1945. He grew up on Martha’s Vineyard and as a youngster put on more than 1,000 miles paddling across the waters with his cousin.
Went to college in Pasadena, California at the Art Center College for Design. After studying industrial art he moved to Detroit and began designing automobiles. While he was happy with the opportunity to earn a living as an artist he strove to be a designer of boats. While in Detroit and working in the auto industry he went back to college and earned a master’s degree in industrial design from Wayne State University.
The artist worked for a short while as designer of yachts, but felt he wasn’t getting enough credit for design techniques. He moved back to Martha’s Vineyard and got a job building boats. After one year of building boats he decided to form his own company and build them himself. They were similar to lobster boats and made of fiberglass. The artist built 24 boats. One day his business partner for the boats ran off with one of his prototypes and he quit the business then and there.
In order to decorate his new house, the artist had done paintings of the vineyard and displayed them around his house. After seeing his great works of art he entered them in an art show featuring local artists. After this show three galleries wanted to display his works. He had made it as an artist without even trying!
The artist had a bout with lung cancer in the mid 2000s. He thought he developed cancer from building the boats with asbestos. He recovered and has been busy ever since by people wanting to commission an Ovid Ward original of Martha’s Vineyard.
Also paints abstract works.
When it comes to how I picture Martha’s Vineyard to be in the evening this artist just nails it. The color of light and the smell of the sea water are at your fingertips when viewing his work. The blues and purples just go perfectly with each other.
Try painting your favorite coastal retreat during sunset when you have the full rainbow of colors to work with.
Happy painting!
D
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