Biography
David Gallup is an explorer. Not just of nature but of the introspective and spiritual connection man has with his environment. His life’s passion has become a quest for new interpretations of the natural world without leaving his roots in Plein-Air Observation-Based painting. Working in the style of the impressionist masters, David’s works are created on location in some of the world’s most beautiful and fascinating places. They often depict moments when natural elements obscure solid forms, such as fog, rain, glare, or darkness. These elements are used in Gallup’s work to visually represent the sense of awe and mystery he feels for the natural world.
Having trained to be an artist since early childhood, he has diligently pursued his craft ever since. As a young man he worked as a writer, illustrator, and art director for a Los Angeles news paper to pay his way through school. In 1990 he graduated from the Otis Art Institute of Parsons School of Design. He immediately began teaching art, and spent four years as an art instructor for Mission: Renaissance, a private art school which stresses having a strong classical background in line, tone and color as well as a solid knowledge of art history. His formal training and these classical influences are still very evident in Gallup’s work today. In 1992 Gallup met japanese artist Hiro Yamagata and soon became the lead staff artist on the “Earthly Paradise” collection. During the production of this massive project, Gallup quickly proved himself to be a remarkably adept artist in many ways, and for over a decade Mr. Yamagata relied heavily on Gallup's skills as a painter, even bringing the young artist to Monte Carlo for the installation of the Earthly Paradise collection at the Royal Museum (Musee Royale des Voitures Ancien). It was during the early years of this relationship that Gallup began to develop his use of color harmony, rather than contrast, which marks his work today. Gallup’s innovative use of basic music theory to find harmony in color is soothing and subtle, and it’s benefits are visible even to the untrained eye.
During 1999, Gallup dedicated a year to painting sunsets every week to capture images of California at sunset. Although he painted almost every night, he selected just one sunset from each week to document the final year of the 20th Century. The resulting collection of stunning impressionist paintings, “52
California Sunsets - The Waning of the Twentieth
Century” was exhibited in West Los Angeles in July 2000 to great critical acclaim. His unique mix of traditional California Impressionism with a conceptual edge caught the eye of the media and the public.
For the past fifteen years, he has chased the warm light of America’s landscape, from Yellowstone to San Diego to Tennessee, with a special focus on nearby Malibu and the Channel Islands. In addition to painting full-time, he also teaches plein-air painting at the renowned California Art Institute, and teaches color theory workshops to a loyal and devoted group of students. He belongs to numerous artist societies, including: California Art Club- Artist Member, Oil Painters of America, Conejo Valley Painter’s Association, LUNA, Conservancy Painters, and the American Society of Portrait Artists. He also serves on the International Advisory Committee for the Natural World Museum in San Francisco.
Throughout his life he has been an avid conservationist. His passion for painting and his concern for the environment led him to seek out other artists with the same philosophy. His strong conviction that art can heal the environment led him to found two groups: Conejo Valley Painter’s Association, a regional group of plein-air painters dedicated to using their paintings to show California’s natural beauty and help conserve California’s wilderness for future generations and LUNA (Landscape United Nature Artists), a nonprofit group of eight nationally recognized Southern California Artists dedicated to using their paintings to record and preserve some of the world’s most scenic and unspoiled ecosystems through museum exhibitions and education.
In fall of 2000, the California Art Club recognized David’s contribution to the traditional art world, making him a full Artist Member. The CAC has since honored Gallup’s work by including him in their prestigious collection of contemporary traditional paintings in the 91st - 95th Annual Gold Medal Exhibitions in 2001-2006. Gallup currently serves as Vice-President of the club and is a member of their Board of Directors.
The art magazines have also taken notice of Gallup. Since 2001 his name has been seen regularly in such
magazines as Southwest Art Magazine, Art of the West Magazine and The Fine Arts Magazine, with in-depth coverage of his career and paintings in The Fine Arts Magazine (2003), Art of the West (2006), and American Artist's Workshop Magazine (2007).
Gallup’s love for painting en plein-air has led him to explore the styles of French and California Impressionism over the years, drawing inspiration from both. He has a passion for capturing fleetingly beautiful moments in nature in a mixture of luminous color and dynamic brushwork that are uniquely his own. David’s paintings depict the ethereal nature of our world and are influenced by such artists as Claude Monet, John Twachtman, J. A. M. Whistler, Hiroshi Yoshida, and Emil Carlson. His work has won numerous local and international awards, and can be seen today in galleries, museum exhibitions and collections nationwide. He is represented by Montana Trails Gallery in Bozeman, MT, and Morseburg Galleries, Los Angeles.
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