About the Artist

Artist Bio:  J. Steven Patton is an Oil Painter and Pastel artist born and bred in New Jersey.  He began painting at the age of fourteen and studied privately with local artists prior to earning a bachelors degree in Fine Art from The College of New Jersey.  His training includes classic and contemporary art and he studied Joseph Albers Color Theory from Tony Robbin, a student of Albers.  He is a member of Studio Montclair, Pro Arts Jersey City, Sussex County Arts & Heritage Council and the New Jersey Pastel Society.  His work has been exhibited in several group shows in New Jersey and may be found in private collections.  

Steve describes himself as a figurative painter as there is usually a human figure or countenance to be found in the subject matter.  His many influences come from film, poetry, news, and history.  Artistic influences derive from the Fauvists and early 20th century expressionists and contemporary artists, in particular Munch, Kokoschka, Bonnard, Rothko, Bacon and Marlene Dumas.  

In his recent series he exploring a mythology directly sourced from his subconscious.  Shapes and figures appear to the artist within the heavily textured underpainting much like discovering forms within clouds.  Further delineated with bold charcoal lines and glowing pigments rubbed into the canvas a story begins to take shape.  Steve takes no credit for the creating the emerging stories.  His is an act of discovery as the canvas speaks to him.  

Steve currently resides in West Orange, NJ and works out of his Manufacturer’s Village studio in East Orange, NJ.