Gary Fifer

An acknowledged plein air master, Gary Fifer traces his artistic roots to the American Impressionists who painted in New York and Connecticut during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He was a long-time protege of Arthur Maynard who, in turn, studied under Frank V. Dumond and was, himself, taught by Willard Metcalf. Fifer also studied with Frank Mason at the ASLNY and, later, at the National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts in New York.

Using his formal training as a starting point, Fifer has created a distinct personal and spiritual style in his work. His goal is to capture the prismatic flow of light moving everywhere through the subjects of his landscapes. For him, light defines color, reaches into space, fills space, bathes and defines objects, and imbues every view with a presence, time, and space. He believes this beauty of light’s illuminations compels him to paint and drives his creative impulses.

When beginning a painting, his first concern is to capture the immediacy of the time of day and time of year. Once the light is fixed in the painting’s background, details are added to complete the work. Since he tries to complete paintings in one sitting – being true to the original impressionist ideal of quickly capturing the mood of the moment – he has learned to render the fleeting elements of a subject by a simplified painting process using prisms and triads.

Gary has taken Best of Show awards from the Rye Arts Center; the Kent Art Association, Kent, Connecticut; and the Ridgewood Art Institute. He has taught studio and en plein air workshops at the Garrison Art Center in Garrison, New York and the Southern Vermont Arts Center, Manchester, VT. He has lectured and demonstrated on location at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. Gary resides in Manchester, Vermont.