ron crouch
ABOUT THE ARTIST
|
Ron Taylor Crouch, born in Fort Worth, Texas, relocated to the Chicago suburbs with his family at nine years old. Upon returning to Fort Worth as a TCU freshman, he was awarded a Nordan Fine Arts scholarship and earned a BFA in painting. After graduating, he worked as an art director in St.Louis, Santa Barbara, and Fort Worth before pursuing graduate studies at North Texas State University (now the University of North Texas), where he obtained an MFA in 1987. Following success in Texas during the late 1980s and 1990s, including notable exhibitions with Dutch Phillips and the Fort Worth Gallery, Ron shifted gears to support his growing family. He embarked on an internet consulting business with a former co-worker, leading to employment at a Fortune 200 corporation in various IT roles, specifically focused on web activities. Throughout this period, Ron remained dedicated to his artistic endeavors, and in 2020, he returned to full-time painting. His outstanding work has been honored by numerous awards and inclusion in exhibitions throughout Texas.
|
ARTIST STATEMENT
|
Perhaps because of my early interest in comics, I’ve always been intrigued by narrative. I see my work as loose pages out of a book where the viewer finishes the story. I don’t have a set way I want the story to be completed -- in fact if it has only one ending it hardly seems worth looking at a second time. As creator, I may be the first viewer, but I’m not the only viewer.
Over the years I’ve used narrative elements to explore issues like the nature of relationships, community, and our personal environments - especially that psychological space we all construct for ourselves. While concerned with narrative, at its heart my work has always been about the joy of playing with the language of art -- focusing on how the tale is told, not what the tale is about. In the heat of the creative moment, it’s easy to lose track of that. At its core, art is a spiritual journey. This journey is one of discovering what is most important to us. And so I find myself exploring the everyday and mundane parts of my life, painting the people I know and love, and the space we all share. |
