Gallery I-zan thompson

Zan Thompson was born into a family of watercolor artists which has greatly influenced his passion and his persistence for watercolor painting. Zan grew up playing and experimenting with art in his parents’ Atlanta studios. Today, Zan paints strictly in watercolor, is a signature member of the Watercolor Society of North Carolina and teaches a number of workshops and classes from drawing to painting. He likes to share with his students the little tricks that helped him conquer the difficult medium of watercolor.  

Zan studied art in high school and college and finally majored in landscape architecture and later urban planning from the University of Georgia. Mr. Thompson worked as a landscape architect and planner for more than forty-five years, twenty-five of which he ran his own firm. He says it was that necessity to communicate through graphic skills and sketching the urban scene almost daily that provided him a comfortable familiarity of communication through renderings that eventually lead him back to watercolor painting.  

Zan paints in realism, impressionism and does abstract as well. Recently he has been experimenting with palette knife painting in watercolor. A method well known to oil and acrylic painters. He starts with a wash and then paints only using a variety of shape palette knives to complete the painting. His former professional career plays a role in many of the subjects he paints. Zan likes to paint landscapes, urban scenes and architectural subjects, as well as flowers and trees. He is especially drawn to mundane subjects many ignore like alleys, industrial sites, concrete plants & lumber yards, construction sites and old worn-out buildings. Being an avid fly-fisher, Zan also likes to paint both fresh water and saltwater fish and flies as well as boats of every kind. Whatever the subject, it seems Mr. Thompson has a well-trained sense of observation and an eye for light and shadow. Combine those skills with his desire as a watercolor artist to create art that will embrace the viewer and share the beauty he sees in a subject: he clearly does leave the viewer with a sense of having been entertained. He paints both En Plein-Air and in the studio and always welcomes an audience. 

" I prefer to paint on-site better known as En Plein Air, but when the weather does not cooperate you will find me in my studio painting from reference sketches and photos of subjects that caught my eye. I enjoy painting the marshes and beaches of the Carolinas as well as Georgia and Florida. The Blue Ridge Mountains are also a favorite area to paint. And don’t be surprised if you look down an alley in some small town or city and see me there painting subjects most people ignore. I will paint most anything especially where light and shadow provide an abundance of drama. The last few years I find myself doing more painting of our natural environments and subjects such as trees and flowers. 

My role as a watercolor artist is to draw the viewers eye to a subject and to express the excitement and drama of the subject using a minimum of brush strokes, not always an easy task, and to provide the viewer an excitement and a feeling of being there on location with me. Feel the breezes in your face, the sounds of nature from birds singing and the splashes of movement in the water. Experience the color and drama of light and shadow. When done correctly, my art will zing your spirit while giving you an appreciation of the essence of our world."