Leo Derkowski

ARTIST STATEMENT:

During my academic training and in my early years as a working artist I explored several approaches to what is called “Modern Art”: abstract expressionism, action painting, hard edge, color field, minimalism and any other kind of “ism” you can think of.  At my core I have always been influenced by the Fauves, impressionism and Post-Impressionism. No matter what style I was painting, my work always had a landscape quality.  As a mature artist, I have gravitated toward a more representational form of landscape painting, influenced by areas in which we have lived: Minnesota, Colorado, and upstate New York, and where we have traveled: Bermuda and Mexico. 

I expect to continue these subjects for many years, not nearly having exhausted all of the possibilities and options. I have a bit of a dual personality when it comes to painting, and I still go back to my roots to do less representational works in the “action painting” style. 

Artist Biography:

Leo grew up in upstate New York and began drawing at an early age. He decided to pursue a career in the visual arts and matriculated at the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York, where he earned a BFA degree in graphic design with a minor in illustrative photography.  After four years of active duty in the U.S. Army, Leo enrolled at the University of Minnesota and in 1974 completed an MFA Degree in Studio Art with a concentration on painting and a minor in modern art criticism. While at the UofM he taught drawing to upper division architecture students. 

After retiring from the business world, he began to paint, draw and photograph on a regular basis as a full-time artist.  In the past few years, he participated in as many regional exhibitions and shows as possible. A 2012 McKnight Emerging Artists grant and a 2016 McKnight Fellowship provided the funding to expand his portfolio.