"Serape"
12" H
x 16" W
Oil SOLD
"Surrogates"
20" H
x 30" W
Oil
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 Born in 1966 and
raised in Northwestern New Mexico,
Chauncey Homer grew up in a rural environment where elements of the Old West still
prevailed. He was raised in a close-knit family who lived a simple life,
and Chauncey's boyhood chores included helping with the garden and the
animals. He developed a love for drawing at a young age and used western
comic books, such as "The Rawhide Kid" and "The Two-Gun Kid", as
references for his sketches. He recalls: "I remember spending hours in
painful determination trying to get the facial features to look just
like they did in my reference." As a teen he continued drawing, using
Conan comics and Frazetta art as inspiration.
During his years of study in the mid-1990s, he graduated from the Art
Center of Tucson and studied with Ron Riddick, whom he credits with
being an important influence in his developing style. For the first six
months as Riddick's student, "all students would produce value paintings
using only five values with burnt umber and white." The reliance on
sound principles versus technique has been critical in the development
of Chauncey's style thus far. He also credits Natalie Riddick for her
support and the knowledge she has shared with him.
The rural Western environment and a passion for getting the details
right lead Chauncey to an artistic style that, although it is still
evolving, he describes as "mysterious realism." While clearly influenced
by a variety of schools, what shows through most strongly in his work is
Classical Realism. Yet the quality of softness in the lighting of his
paintings suggests the influence of Impressionism. Chauncey cites
Sargent, Zorn, Sorolla, Repin, and Bastin-LePage as among his favorite
artists.
Perhaps it is best to conclude with the artist's own words:
"It is difficult to become technically proficient with colored goop and
hair tied to a stick. I have an inner drive to be good at this. I can't
really explain it. I just want to depict subtle beauty, simple everyday
moments. I'm not interested in dramatic vistas or postcard-perfect
settings. I find my inspiration in the things most other artists pass
up." from William Harryman, Freelance Writer.
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