Bill Garrison

Bill Garrison is rapidly becoming one of Arkansas's premier landscape artists. He has won numerous awards for his work, and it can be found in many public and private collections across the United States and abroad.

His paintings hang in many prestigious corporate collections including the Fort Smith Convention Center in Fort Smith, Arkansas; Arkansas Tech University's Williamson Hall in Russellville, Arkansas; Tyson Food Headquarters in Fayetteville, Arkansas; the Patrick Henry Hays Senior Center in North Little Rock, Arkansas; Merrill Lynch Corporate offices, and the Arkansas Court of Appeals Justice Building, both in Little Rock, Arkansas. His work can also be found in numerous banks and medical facilities in Northwest Arkansas.

Bill and his wife, Gloria, were selected as the first Artists-in-Residence at Buffalo National River in 1996, and in 1998 at Glacier National Park.

Bill has consistently placed in the top 200, as well as once in the top 100, in the Arts For The Parks national competition.

His work has reached the finalist category in international competitions as well, being one of ten finalists in the International Artist magazine's "Seascape, Rivers and Lakes Challenge". He has twice placed in the Art Renewal Center's top 100 category in their International Salon Competition.

Additional awards include "Best of Show" in the 2003-2004 Fine Arts of Arkansas Competition and Exhibit at the Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Bill has studied with artists whose work inspires him, most notably, with Richard Schmid. He says, "I consider Richard Schmid to be the best living artist of our time".

Artist organization memberships include: Oil Painters of America, Outdoor Painters Society and Artists of Northwest Arkansas.

Bill believes in giving back to the community that supports his art. Some of the numerous organizations that have benefited from his generosity include: the American Heart Association, Arkansas River Valley Arts Center, RAIN Association, Girl Scouts, and many others.

ARTIST'S STATEMENT
Being an artist is a continuous learning process. I think I have learned more from the process of plein air painting than from any other source. Painting on location outdoors forces me to paint more quickly and intuitively because of the constantly changing lighting conditions. When I paint in the studio I like to work from studies I have done on location. If I paint using photographs as a reference, it is my goal to make the painting look as if it were painted on location. I have learned that it takes more than merely duplicating a photograph to make a good painting. Simplification of the subject and selective emphasis of certain elements of the painting are essential. Composition of the subject plays a major role in producing a good painting.

The realistic quality of my paintings is enhanced by the exaggeration of atmospheric perspective giving the two dimensional painting a three dimensional appearance.

Being a member of the Outdoor Painting Society I frequently travel to other parts of the country as the Texas Gulf Coast, Oklahoma, and Colorado to paint. I find that painting the landscapes of Arkansas is the most fulfilling of all.