Check out Duffy Sheridan’s Artwork

Today we’d like to introduce you to Duffy Sheridan.

Duffy, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
I have been painting since I was a child. My father was also an artist and encouraged me to learn to paint anything and everything. I have traveled the world and dedicated my artistic life to the discovery and expression of beauty as I see it.

My family and I have spent a good portion of our lives living in smaller communities from the Falkland Islands to Samoa, from the mountains of California to the island of Kauai, to the desert of Arizona and this has allowed us to appreciate the richness of the human family. These experiences have compelled me to attempt through my painting to express the dignity of the human spirit.

Although I did not re-enter the international art world until the mid-90s, I have been designated a Living Master (TM) by the Art Renewal Center and am a Charter member of the International Guild of Realism. My work can be found in prestigious institutions from a Cathedral in the South Pacific to the US Air Force Academy, to Corporate Headquarters in Manhattan, to the Baha’i World Center in Haifa, Israel, to private residences of Kings, Judges, and Bishops, and collectors worldwide.

For almost 50 years, the teachings of the Baha’i Faith have been the primary influence of my life and work and have dominated my continual search for that balance of craftsmanship and artistic expression which has the ability to elevate, in some small way, the human condition. My wife and I helped found Desert Rose Baha’i Institute, a Center for Arts and Agriculture outside Eloy, Arizona in 1997. After a period away, we have recently returned and opened our studios and a showroom there and are helping to develop the future arts facilities.

We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
I am a figurative painter. Throughout my life, I have painted in a variety of styles, but my love for observation and appreciation for the world of creation has brought me back to realism.

Over the years, I have been considering the nature of art, and its value to mankind. I have come to realize that the role of art and artists is fluid and it changes according to the needs of our world culture. I believe that over the last 80 years, with the rise of cinema, radio and television communication, the role of the artist, which used to be described as the communicator of the human condition, has naturally changed in accordance with history. I believe that every artist must now assess the needs of the time in which we live and make every effort to accommodate those needs in some way according to his or her ability.

For myself, I realize my tendency is in the appreciation of and the desire to express in some small way, the wonderment of human attraction.

I see in elements of the human form all that is meaningful to me. My years of practice and exploration have led me to realize that all I perceive to be wonderful about art, I find expressed in the human form. Things that have now become important to me are imbued in the simplest of gestures where purity of color and form or simple human expressions, can exemplify significant ideals and I know my art searches for that.

What do you know now that you wished you had learned earlier?
My advice is to master the prerequisites of your craft. This takes time and practice, practice, practice.

Also, be continually aware of your personal tendencies. Attempt to discover your path of service through your art.

Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
My original oil paintings can be seen at Jones and Terwilliger Galleries in Carmel and Palm Desert, California; The Marshall Gallery in Scottsdale, Arizona and in our new studios and gallery at Desert Rose Baha’i Institute, 1642 W William Sears Drive, Eloy, Arizona. Reproductions are also available at Marshall Gallery and my studio.

Contact Info:

• Address: Studio – 1642 W William Sears Drive, Eloy, AZ 85131
• Website: www.duffysheridan.com
• Phone: 808 855 5029
• Email: duffy@duffysheridan.com

Image Credit:
Personal photo credit Pat Pannell

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