CHET
RENESON Chet Reneson was born in 1934, at a time when the nation was just beginning to pull out of the Great Depression. Times were still rough all over and steady work was scarce. His parents operated a game farm on the outskirts of Colchester, Connecticut. Financially, it was never a success, but the quality of life was perfect for a future outdoor artist. At nine, Reneson discovered that he had an aptitude for drawing. Scenes on the farm became his subject matter: foxes stalking pheasants, deer browsing in the pasture, and ducks winging overhead. Illustrators like Bob Kuhn were his artistic idols, and he established his life-long practice of painting only from first-hand experience. After being out of high school for four years, he enrolled in the University of Hartford Art School. After art school he worked for Pratt and Whitney doing cut-away drawings for airplane engines. Later, he did animal illustrations for Time-Life Books. In 1966, he took two of his watercolor sporting scenes to the Crossroads of Sport Gallery in New York City. They agreed to display the paintings; elated, Reneson treated himself to lunch. When he stopped back after his meal, his watercolors were nowhere to be seen. "Where the hell are my paintings?" he snapped. "We already sold them," was the reply. The next year, having banked a little money from his tenure as a commercial artist, Reneson became a full-time painter. Chet has had two books published on his art: SHADOWS ON THE FLATS (1997), and THE WATERCOLORS OF CHET RENESON (2001). |
Russell Fink Gallery |