Like a thick fleece against the bone-dampening weather cloaking our region, the warm, tonal palette of landscape artist Andrzej (Andrew) Skorut offers a visual mode of transport to the sun-drenched Southwest. Seventeen years ago, Skorut left Krakow, Poland, and its similarly dismal winters for the hearty summers and winters of Utah. Now infused with the spirit of great American West, this émigré lovingly depicts the landscapes of a new homeland. Over the past several years he has displayed his wares at galleries in the famed Western art strongholds of Santa Fe, Denver, Jackson and Park City.
"When I paint landscapes, it's because of the places I've been to. Does it make me warm, peaceful, serene? I'm trying to send this message by using warm colors," Skorut says. The message is also unequivocally sent via the soothing, lyrical titles of his compositions, including "Rustic Landscape," "Golden Sky," "Rustic Meadow" and "Sienna Landscape."
This 35-year-old United States citizen plans on staying in Utah with his wife (who is also Polish) and three young children, where they have happily assimilated to the outdoors lifestyle. "I really like Utah because the landscape is so diverse. In an hour, you can be in the mountains, deserts or rivers," says Skorut, who is speaking from a personal as well as an artistic perspective.
Skorut decided to become an artist as an elementary student in Krakow, where the richness and intensity of the thousand-year-old city's art and architecture raced through his veins. He attended the competitive Art High School (Liceum Sztuk Plastycznych) and in 1987 emigrated to the United States, where he qualified for an Honors at Entrance scholarship to the Salt Lake Community College to continue with his art education. From there he transferred to the University of Utah where he was a Phi Kappa member, graduating in 1995 with a bachelor's degree in fine arts.
After receiving his degree, Skorut was selected for an internship with artist David Dornan, a member of the art faculty at the university. This internship was a key factor in determining Skorut's future as an artist. In 1998 he was selected by Southwest Art magazine as an "Artist to Watch."
Rembrandt is inspiration
He lists his influences as Rembrandt (whose work speaks for itself), Russell Chatham (a renowned, self-taught landscape artist from Livingston, Mont. and the grandson of the great landscape painter Gottardo Piazzoni) and Odd Nerdrum (a Norwegian figurative artist and painter who adopted an old-world discipline of mixing and grinding his own pigments).
"When I use color, I try not to be realistic. It's more on an emotional level. When I paint, I don't try to paint a tree or a meadow. A combination of marks creates an illusion of a recognizable image. Painting is the balance of the image of something you can recognize and abstract qualities you can't recognize."
Rembrandt and Nerdrum were masters of glazing or layering, a technique which Skorut has adopted. He typically uses 15 - 20 different glazes on his oil paintings, which are similar to the glazes used on faux finishes inside a house. The glazes are transparent, showcasing the colors on top and bottom. Additionally, when light bounces off the canvas, the composition will change colors according to the light.
Glazing is also a forgiving technique and allows an artist to work on one piece for an indefinite amount of time. "If I don't like something, I can add another glaze on top and change the whole painting."
Skorut describes the difference in viewing his work from different physical perspectives: "When you look at my paintings from the distance, they are peaceful and quiet. Come close, and you discover more energy. Some brush strokes, marks I create, run through the length of the canvas. When you're 20, 30 feet away, then a few feet, it's a different painting."
The same is true for the masters he emulates. As you close in on a Rembrandt or Nerdrum, you "rediscover how they painted it. The quality is not very obvious - you have to spend some time. Just the mark itself is as important as the image."
In order to make these marks, Skorut will scratch into the surface with many different things, such as sticks, brushes or rags, in order to change the tension of the canvas surface and reveal concealed depths. "Work to me it has to be visually stimulating. It brings energy to me and this translates into the canvas. Without this energy, it would be boring. It is very important as an artist to be excited and have this energy."
Skorut's work will be on display at the Patricia Rovzar Gallery on 118 Central Way from February 10 to March 7. The opening reception for the artist will be held on Art Walk night, February 10 from 6 to 9 p.m. The gallery is open Monday to Saturday, 10:30 a.m. - 6 p.m., Sunday from 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. Information: 889-4627, mail@rovzargallery.com or www.rovzarga[[In-content Ad]]
