Eli Cedrone

Artist's Statement:
I’ve always been influenced by the power of images to express ideas and emotions. Painting is a process of discovery and decision-making where disparate elements pull together until the image is clearly expressed. I'm drawn to the human form where figures exist both in representational and painterly worlds. Often I’ll explore a narrative theme in order to capture the emotional power of a moment in time. I think common everyday things can be beautiful and resonant without being manipulative or artificially provocative. For me, landscape painting is a journey in search of something that evokes a personal response to nature beyond the obvious and descriptive. Ultimately my concerns are with the expressive qualities of light captured with paint.
​
Soon after graduation from the School of Art & Design | Suffolk University in Boston, I decided to skip the harsh New England winters, choosing instead to begin my career in Bermuda at Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising. I took a brief sabbatical from my job to study art in Florence, Italy. After nearly five years on “the rock” I developed a case of island fever, and set my sights on California. For the next ten years I lived in Laguna Beach, working as an illustrator and magazine designer. Marriage and the birth of my daughter Olivia brought me back to my roots in Boston where I continued studies at the School of the MFA and began painting full-time. I return often to Bermuda and California to visit friends and teach painting workshops.