My goal as a painter is to document a region with a particular spirit of time and place.
I’ve been painting the Western Pennsylvania landscape since 1985. That landscape includes just about everything from old factories to rolling farmlands. Everything contributes to the visual texture of my environment. My process is experiential. I spent time on location studying my subject at different times of day, season and weather conditions. Most paintings are started and finished on site, in plein air. But others are worked up to a larger scale in my studio from small studies. My work is a mix of spirited location painting and quiet reflection in my studio. It is a daily process of seeing and translating the world to paintings. I’m especially drawn to the urban landscape here in Pittsburgh. Giving a voice to areas that are in decay is part of my mission. Many houses stand like orphans because others have been torn down due to neglect. The feeling is one of austere loneliness.
Ron Donoughe, a native of Loretto, PA now living in the Lawrenceville section of Pittsburgh has been painting the Western Pennsylvania landscape for nearly 25 years. His work features the many textures of this region. Ron currently teaches painting at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts and at workshops throughout eastern United States. He is a graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Additional studies have included the California College of Arts & Crafts in Oakland, California.
Ron was awarded best of show at Three Rivers Arts Festival, 2003, and his work was selected for Salon International, Masters of Contemporary Fine Art, 2004. He was a featured artist on a special for PBS, Visionaries, which showcased the Westmoreland Museum of American Art. Ron’s was also featured in a one person exhibition at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts in November 2006 with a book released at that time, Essence of Pittsburgh. Ron is a member of the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh and his paintings can be found in many corporate and private collections as well as The Westmoreland Museum of American Art and The Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art and The University Museum at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. His new book, Paintings of Indiana County, Pennsylvania will be published May 2011.
Website
http://www.donoughe.com
