Glenn Dean
Featured in 2000
They Come With the Dust and Go With the Wind, oil, 48 x 36.
Of the High Country, oil, 30 x 30.
In a recent conversation with Glenn Dean, the California-based artist recalls that he was 23 years old when he appeared in the inaugural issue of the “21 Under 31” feature. “I felt fortunate because I was being nationally recognized,” Dean says. “It was a big encouragement at the time, considering I was just starting out. I remember being complimented by artists and collectors. And the recognition led to better gallery representation. Basically, I think it was a good nudge forward for me.”
At the time, Dean says he was still searching for an artistic identity. He didn’t know enough about paint handling or his own interests to craft a vision. Dean only knew that he was drawn to capturing the landscape as subject matter and painting big shapes as part of his style.
Today, Dean is known for his depictions of the California and Southwestern landscape. When he appeared in the magazine in 2000, he had not traveled much farther than San Diego. These days he makes regular forays to favored destinations in Arizona, Utah and New Mexico. The Southwest’s dry, desert terrain with its rocky canyons and stately cactuses holds a special allure for him. In California the painting siren calls him to the Eastern Sierra and Mojave deserts. In recent years Dean has turned his attention to depicting the figure in his desertscapes, bringing the human form to the forefront of his paintings.
Dean says his artistic style now is best described as “simplified realism,” which for him means honoring his subjects with a natural sense of color, light and form while giving an illusion of details through simplifying them. He continues, “Hopefully, 10 or 20 years from now, my work will reveal more of my identity as my artistic vision clarifies and my skill to express it develops even further.”
contact information
landscapesofthewest.com
representation
Maxwell Alexander Gallery, Pasadena, CA, maxwellalexandergallery.com.
Legacy Gallery, Santa Fe, NM, and Scottsdale, AZ, legacygallery.com.
Medicine Man Gallery, Tucson, AZ, medicinemangallery.com.
Included in “Catching Up: Conversations with Five Past ’21 Under 31′ Artists” by Bonnie Gangelhoff, from the August/September 2024 issue.