On My Radar: Artist Nicholas Simmons

Fresh Sushi 41" x 41" 2007 (selected from an international field of 1200 watercolorists for the top prize at 2007 National Watercolor Society 87th Annual Exhibition in Los Angeles)

There is a phenom DC based artist that should be on your radar. Check out his works below and above and visit his website for an entire color explosion. Nicholas Simmons first began his work in Sarasota, Florida and studied with many well-known watercolorists, most notably Valfred Thelin and Barbara Nechis. (his work is featured in Nechis' acclaimed book, "Watercolor From The Heart").

He quickly developed a bold original style, and enjoyed much early success. Also an accomplished guitarist, he made music his first career, only painting occasional commissions. In 2002 he returned to painting full-time, and launched www.nicholassimmons.com in 2003. A few short years later, he has earned a reputation as one of the most exciting contemporary watermedia artists on the scene. His work is revered by fellow artists, and is held in public and private collections throughout the United States and abroad. Simmons is also sought after as a workshop artist, and is known for his fresh, unorthodox, and often irreverent approach.

In addition to the painters he has studied with, he lists the work of John Singer Sargent, J.A.M. Whistler, Joaquin Sorolla, J.M.W. Turner, Henri Toulouse Lautrec, Gustav Klimt, Paul Klee, Mark Rothko, Andrew Wyeth, Robert Motherwell, Mauricio Lasansky, and Alex Kanevsky as influences.

In 2007, he won top prize at the National Watercolor Society 87th Annual Exhibtion. He lives here in the District with his wife and their daughter.

"I paint very few traditional watercolors anymore. My best work embraces an oil-painter's sense, combined with the striking effects that only water-based media can achieve. I strive to compose either an abstract perspective of the real, or an engaging interpretation of the unreal." ~Nicholas Simmons~

Zarzuela II 30" x 37"