Rusty Jones
Painting En plein aire is the love and focus for artist Rusty Jones. Artists have long painted outdoors, but in the mid-19th century working in natural light became particularly important, and this method now has captured this son of Texas who worked as a medical illustrator for over twenty years. After obtaining a Masters Degree in Medical Illustration, he illustrated countless medical and pharmaceutical ad campaigns, medical journals, college textbooks and more. Learning to meet deadlines and to draw countless hours equipped him with a solid foundation to move into the fine art field.
Rusty’s love of sports then led him into sporting art which landed him illustration assignments with such notable magazines as Golf Illustrated, Golf Magazine, the Golf Journal and American Way Magazine. He further provided sports art for the Coca Cola Foods Division for the Summer Olympics, the Dallas Cowboys and the Dallas Mavericks.
Today he almost exclusively pursues the landscape from the Big Sur coastline of California, to the beauty of the Texas Hill Country, to the diverse environments of Big Bend, New Mexico, Arizona and beyond. While influenced by artists like Edgar Payne and Richard Schmid he is totally captured by the impact of natural light on location. He has stated “Painting outdoors take passion. Without it the wind, head, snow and bugs would drive you indoors!”
Now offering and sharing his acquired skills, Rusty often teaches workshops around the country. He says: “Every painter can learn to paint better by dedicating himself to learning how to paint by studying with others and by painting outdoors often and by intense practice sessions in the studio. There is no short cut. But along the way you learn the pure joy that comes from applying paint to canvas and capturing essence of the landscape being painted.”
Education
- Masters of Science in Medical Illustration, University of Texas Health Science Center at Dallas, 1976
- Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Communications, University of Texas Health Science Center at Dallas, 1974