CHESNEY RHEAUME

I was born in Connecticut in 1954 and was mentally designing interiors and furniture as a child. As far back as I can remember I've been dreaming paintings while asleep. At the age of 47 (some years ago now) I finally started to paint. At that time the floodgates opened.

I quit my IT career to paint full time. In 2005 I opened the Art & Soul Gallery in San Francisco in order to offer my work and the work of other artists and crafts-people to the art-loving public.

Although largely self-taught, I received training at the San Francisco School of Art and the Desert Fine Arts Academy in Palm Springs, CA where I taught art to elementary school students as well. I'm still learning by reading about colors, techniques, brushes, mediums, watching DVDs by other artists and any other way I can.

It used to be that my fondest influences were other painters such as Frankenthaler, Modigliani and Diebenkorn. But now I have to say that Jim Dine tops the list. Although I have started using oils, my favorite painting medium is acrylic with mixed medium enhancements such as oil stick, enamel, sheet metal, molding paste and paper.