{"id":5832,"date":"2011-02-17T06:00:29","date_gmt":"2011-02-17T06:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zatista.com\/blog\/?p=5832"},"modified":"2016-07-20T06:53:20","modified_gmt":"2016-07-20T06:53:20","slug":"featured-artist-john-aquilino","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zatista.ie\/blog\/2011\/02\/featured-artist-john-aquilino\/","title":{"rendered":"Featured Artist: John Aquilino"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

\"\"<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Winner of numerous awards for his compelling cityscapes, Maryland-based artist John Aquilino talks to Zatista’s contributing writer Nancy Cost about his unique depiction of the urban landscape.<\/span><\/i><\/div>\n
\n

<\/a>How did you become interested in your subject matter?<\/strong>
\nI lived in New York City for 22 years. While in New York, I would often go over to the East River to take photographs of the Queens\/Brooklyn skyline. There was one area that intrigued me \u2013 lots of old, falling down buildings and warehouses \u2013 and I wanted to do a large painting of it but just didn\u2019t have the studio space. Later, when I had the space I was able to do that painting. It still hangs in my home. It triggered my passion for cityscapes.<\/p>\n

Do you paint other cities besides New York?<\/strong>
\nYes, I take my camera with me whenever I visit a city \u2013 although I do find that New York continues to provide the most inspiration, along with Baltimore \u2013 something to do with the urban character of these two cities. Pittsburgh and Boston have a similar feel to me.\u00a0I\u2019m not trying to \u201cdocument\u201d specific cities or buildings (unless it is a commission) so it isn\u2019t that important to me what city I\u2019m painting.<\/p>\n

How do you get inspired?<\/strong>
\nLooking at artwork in museums, galleries or art fairs inspires me. I always enjoy seeing other urban landscapes. Walking through cities inspires me too.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Arrow Down by John Aquilino<\/p><\/div>\n

What time of day do you like to be in the studio?<\/strong>
\nI\u2019m usually in the studio all day, starting at about nine in morning. I\u2019ll break for dinner and go back to work until about 7 or 8 o\u2019clock. If I\u2019m not painting, I\u2019m building frames, or taking photographs \u2013 something related to my artwork.<\/p>\n

Do you paint on location?<\/strong>
\nNo, I work from photographs that I’ve taken. I must have thousands of images by now.<\/p>\n

How did your color palette evolve?<\/strong>
\nWhen I first started painting cityscapes I stuck with the colors I saw. It took me a couple of years to start playing with color and exaggerate the palette. In 2007, I began experimenting with paper collage, which allowed me to \u201cflatten\u201d the colors, which in turn influenced my painting and color choice. I\u2019m surprised when I look back at how much my palette has changed \u2013 it\u2019s more vibrant and creative now.<\/p>\n

Who collects your work?<\/strong>
\nAll kinds of people. Often, I find that people working in some aspect of design or building are particularly drawn to my work \u2013 architects, interior designers, real estate developers, etc. People who live in cities also seem to appreciate my work.<\/p>\n

How is your depiction of the urban landscape unique?<\/strong>
\nUnlike many artists, I eliminate all people, vehicles, vegetation, graffiti, etc. I move, delete, or add architectural features in order to focus on the composition. Buildings \u2013 along with the windows, doorways, and other elements \u2013 are really just shapes and for me, a painting is about arranging those shapes in an interesting way.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

White Rooftop Door by John Aquilino<\/p><\/div>\n

What are your favorite art museums in New York or around the world?<\/strong>
\nI like going to museums where ever I am. I enjoy New York\u2019s \u201cusual suspects\u201d \u2013 the Met<\/a>, the Modern<\/a>, Whitney<\/a>, the Guggenheim<\/a>. Recently, I went to the New Museum<\/a>, which was great. In DC, The National Portrait Gallery<\/a>, the American Art Museum<\/a>, the Phillips<\/a> and the Corcoran<\/a>. I also visit the museums in Baltimore, including the Visionary Art Museum<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Who are some of your favorite artists?<\/strong>
\nTwo of my favorites have always been Chuck Close<\/a> and Lucian Freud<\/a>. I love how they manipulate their subject matter to create really interesting work. This is what I\u2019m trying to accomplish in my own work.\u00a0Charles Sheeler<\/a> is an artist that I\u2019ve become intrigued with as a result of urban landscapes. His abstract cityscapes are really exciting and the fact that he was a photographer is really interesting to me.\u00a0My uncle, Don Aquilino, is one of my favorite artists. He has been a fulltime artist all his life, working in both painting and sculpture. In addition to being an inspiration, he has been a teacher. At 80 years old, he is still in the studio painting.<\/p>\n

In a city like New York with a million vistas, what’s your favorite vantage point?<\/strong>
\nI prefer looking across at buildings rather than up from the street. The challenge is finding that vantage point. I take lots of photographs from the tops of parking garages, from bridges or overpasses, and through windows of other buildings.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Silver Cyclinder by John Aquilino<\/p><\/div>\n

What\u2019s hanging on the walls in your home?<\/strong>
\nMy work, which rotates as pieces get moved out for shows. Other pieces include paintings and drawings by my uncle Don. There is also a growing collection of artwork by Washington, DC area artists. Some are purchased and others are trades. Whenever possible, my wife and I try to buy artwork when a painting sells. We think it is important to support other artists.<\/p>\n

What would our readers be surprised to know about your work?<\/strong>
\nI think people would be surprised to know how fast I work. I was a commercial artist for 25 years, both as a conventional illustrator and then as a digital artist doing 2D and 3D animation. I always worked under pressure and deadlines \u2013 there wasn’t time to spend three months on a painting getting it just right. I think that’s why I spend long days in the studio, often working on two or three paintings at a time.
\n– <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Winner of numerous awards for his compelling cityscapes, Maryland-based artist John Aquilino talks to Zatista’s contributing writer Nancy Cost about his unique depiction of the urban landscape…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[338],"tags":[736,735],"class_list":["post-5832","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-artists","tag-cityscapes","tag-john-aquilino"],"yoast_head":"\nFeatured Artist: John Aquilino - Zatista.ie<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.zatista.ie\/blog\/2011\/02\/featured-artist-john-aquilino\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Featured Artist: John Aquilino - 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