Today we’d like to introduce you to A.D. Cook.
Hi A.D., thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve always known that I was destined to create art. Forever an artist, I started drawing early and have explored a variety of creative media and techniques throughout my life.
When I was young, my dad worked in construction, so I moved a lot from one town or state to another, often attending two or three new schools each year. While I was always the “new kid,” my enthusiasm for art was the one constant I could take with me, and I enjoyed creating a trail of drawings, original artwork, and murals in homes and schools across the United States — a passion I carried into adulthood.
Throughout my creative journey, I’ve continued to explore a variety of media, including drawing, painting, sculpting, photography, design, and writing, exploring several subjects and styles.
In the early eighties, I worked as a freelance creative illustrator and designer, mostly in Phoenix, for advertising agencies and assorted clients, along with a few band logos and the like, while further developing my skills. My real passion at the time was developing my airbrush skills. In the process, I discovered that Portland, Oregon, was the epicenter of the airbrush community, so I packed up and moved north, taking on any art project that I could find.
In the Spring of 1989, I met an entrepreneur who wanted to create a national video store chain to compete with Blockbuster. After designing his logo and the store’s overall look and feel, I created a position with Hollywood Entertainment, dba Hollywood Video stores, based in Portland, Oregon, to run their graphic design department and produce dozens of large-scale hand-painted murals of movie stars and celebrities for the growing retail giant. Over the next few years, I painted hundreds of epic murals throughout Oregon and Washington, which were later produced as murals for stores nationwide.
After five years, I left Hollywood Video. I founded a successful graphic design and print brokerage firm in Portland, Oregon’s Pearl District, where my team created graphic design work primarily for the airbrush-related art products industry, software developers, and the automotive aftermarket.
During that period, I began producing a series of large, realistic paintings of iconic American motorcycles while serving as art director and managing my design team.
In 2004, I created the first of many life-size, realistic fine art nudes on specially prepared canvas and metal, which I later exhibited and sold in art galleries across the country and to private collectors.
I have since further explored my passion for large-scale hyperrealistic automotive art and Americana imagery, which is my current focus.
My original artworks are featured in magazines and books as masterworks. My artworks have also been exhibited in national museums and art galleries from Key West to Hawaii, and I have been a featured artist and speaker at ArtExpo in New York City and Las Vegas.
My creative imagery transcends traditional art forms, leaving collectors marveling at the power, beauty, and detail of my artwork. The very nature of my art provides a lifetime of lasting enjoyment and increasing value for my collectors.
And though it reads like a long journey, my passion to create powerful art is as strong as ever. I often feel as though I’m just getting started.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
When I was young, the struggle was in the constant moving from state to state. Every time we moved, I was expected to leave everything behind, which meant constantly starting over with new tools and supplies. Still, it ultimately became an advantage as I developed skills I might otherwise never have explored.
I’m not convinced that a smooth road exists for artists. We are forever in a state of flux as we develop new processes and further our passion and skills. Struggles are part of the process, and on some level, I embrace them because they keep me at my creative best. A big part of creating art is problem-solving and overcoming obstacles.
My biggest struggle is simply a lack of time to create. I am constantly flowing with ideas and a desire to express myself through my art. Most of my paintings take countless hours to create, and I often wish I were more prolific. But I find that the answer is to keep on keeping on — to create even when there’s no time or apparent resources — whether it’s a big canvas on my easel or just a blank sheet of paper.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Currently, I specialize in large-scale (typically 15-24 sq. ft.) hyperrealism artworks on canvas and metal, mostly of American motorcycles and exotic cars.
Amazingly, years later, I’m still somewhat known for the dozens of super-sized Hollywood Video murals I painted years ago.
Most recently, I am proudest of the LUSTER: Realism and Hyperrealism in Contemporary Automobile and Motorcycle Paintings National Museum Tour, where I was a featured artist, with a selection of my automotive and motorcycle artworks on display at 20 major museums from 2019 through 2025. I created a special four-foot-by-ten-foot artwork in celebration of the Corvette’s 70th anniversary, which was displayed at the National Corvette Museum for nearly two years and received extensive press coverage. The MOMENTUM artwork is currently on display in Indianapolis.
I am also rather proud of the sculpture I created to benefit St. Jude Children’s Hospital a few years back, which was auctioned off in grand style in Las Vegas, raising funds for a worthy cause.
The diversity of my work sets me apart from other artists. Rather than sticking to one subject or medium, I have explored countless ideas and processes to incorporate into my art. That, I believe, has contributed to my continued passion for exploration in the creative realm.
What matters most to you?
Human-created art over AI. The creative process is what creating art is all about. There are no shortcuts. The hardest part of creating art isn’t about having a good idea. It’s about the process — the doing. Anyone can have an idea. Art is about becoming someone in the process who can follow through and create something that helps you grow as a human, and ultimately, that others connect with and enjoy.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.adcook.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adcookart/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ADCookArtist
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adcook/
- Twitter: https://x.com/adcookart
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ADCook
- Other: https://modelsociety.com/Artist/A-D-Cook
