Daniel Merriam was born in New York in a big family. He mainly paints with acrylic and watercolors. His works are very complex and insightful, one can practically spend hours on studying these work…
If Daniel Merriam's watercolors were books, they would be fairytales once upon a time in a far away European dreamland. The painter, who is currently exhibiting at AFA Gallery (covered here), compares his process to a writer's. In our recent interview, Merriam told us about the influence of 17th and 18th century Baroque architecture on his works which he draws from memory. Although imaginary, his elaborate structures must be believable in their world, and he builds them out carefully as a point of reference. In this sense, one could also call him an architect.
If Daniel Merriam's watercolors were books, they would be fairytales once upon a time in a far away European dreamland. The painter, who is currently exhibiting at AFA Gallery (covered here), compares his process to a writer's. In our recent interview, Merriam told us about the influence of 17th and 18th century Baroque architecture on his works which he draws from memory. Although imaginary, his elaborate structures must be believable in their world, and he builds them out carefully as a point of reference. In this sense, one could also call him an architect.
Daniel Merriam was born in New York in a big family. He mainly paints with acrylic and watercolors. His works are very complex and insightful, one can practically spend hours on studying these work…
If Daniel Merriam's watercolors were books, they would be fairytales once upon a time in a far away European dreamland. The painter, who is currently exhibiting at AFA Gallery (covered here), compares his process to a writer's. In our recent interview, Merriam told us about the influence of 17th and 18th century Baroque architecture on his works which he draws from memory. Although imaginary, his elaborate structures must be believable in their world, and he builds them out carefully as a point of reference. In this sense, one could also call him an architect.
Offbeat Art 3
Si algunos creadores inciden mucho en el lado oscuro y doloroso de la vida, otros -de los que Daniel Merriam sería un buen ejemplo- optan por un surrealismo que nos traslada a mundos mágicos en los cuáles la imaginación se desborda por doquier. Por ello no es de extrañar que Merriam sea uno de los artistas más solicitados a la hora de ilustrar libros -tanto infantiles como de adultos- aunque también ha trabajado como ilustrador comercial y arquitectónico para diversas multinacionales. Sus obras se exponen en el Museo Nacional de Ilustración Americana y en otros muchos museos y ha sigo galardonado con un Master Honorario en Letras Humanas de la Universidad de Nueva Inglaterra además de otros premios que reconocen su talento y la calidad de sus creaciones. http://danielmerriam.com/ https://www.facebook.com/DANIELMERRIAM/ http://www.bubblestreetgallery.com/artists/daniel-merriam «Nací en York Harbor, un pequeño pueblo de pescadores con una próspera escena turística veraniega. La zona atrae a decenas de artistas debido a sus cualidades rústicas y un encanto de viejo mundo. Teníamos mucha exposición al arte en la región. De hecho, las expectativas artísticas eran bastante altas debido a las prósperas artes locales y su formación académica. De niño vi a algunos de los mejores ejemplos de arte moderno original de nuestro tiempo. Me sorprendieron tanto que me vi obligado a dominar las habilidades de arte, incluso cuando aún era un niño. Maine también es bastante rural, por lo que los paseos por los bosques eran naturales para mí. Podía caminar millas sólo, sin una brújula o un camino a seguir. Pero además de lo mucho que sabía de la tierra, también era un maestro de las aguas. Entre la navegación, la pesca y el buceo, pasé tanto tiempo en el agua como fuera. Mi mundo estaba hecho de la crudeza de la realidad de la naturaleza y los tratamientos de fantasía de mi percepción. Mi conexión con la naturaleza, sin duda, está arraigada en las formas y patrones dentro de mi arte. Tanto mi familia como nuestra comunidad poseían una calidad caprichosa que permanece en mi arte hasta el día de hoy. Podría decir que mi infancia es lo que más ha inspirado mi arte.» Todas las imágenes y/o vídeos que se muestran corresponden al artista o artistas referenciados. Su exposición en este blog pretende ser un homenaje y una contribución a la difusión de obras dignas de reconocimiento cultural, sin ninguna merma a los derechos que correspondan a sus legítimos propietarios. En ningún caso hay en este blog interés económico directo ni indirecto. Javier Nebot
“This whole creation is essentially subjective, and the dream is the theater where the dreamer is at once: scene, actor, prompter, stage manager, author, audience, and critic.” CARL JUNG If Hieronymus Bosch took the blue pill instead and sat down to a mad hatters tea party with Marie Antoinette, a hookah-smoking Caterpillar & a couple of unicorns you may just open the curtain into Daniel Merriam's theatre fantastic. A Master American Surrealist painter, his worlds speak to those of us who adored the movie The Labyrinth and found ourselves asking, Why the hell wouldn't she stay with the Goblin King? It's firmly the territory of a child's bubblegum mind. With that nostaligic whisper of storyteller musings, his works refreshingly bring us back to those times before childhood characters were pimped out as playing cards, blockbuster
Daniel Merriam was born in New York in a big family. He mainly paints with acrylic and watercolors. His works are very complex and insightful, one can practically spend hours on studying these work…
Si algunos creadores inciden mucho en el lado oscuro y doloroso de la vida, otros -de los que Daniel Merriam sería un buen ejemplo- optan por un surrealismo que nos traslada a mundos mágicos en los cuáles la imaginación se desborda por doquier. Por ello no es de extrañar que Merriam sea uno de los artistas más solicitados a la hora de ilustrar libros -tanto infantiles como de adultos- aunque también ha trabajado como ilustrador comercial y arquitectónico para diversas multinacionales. Sus obras se exponen en el Museo Nacional de Ilustración Americana y en otros muchos museos y ha sigo galardonado con un Master Honorario en Letras Humanas de la Universidad de Nueva Inglaterra además de otros premios que reconocen su talento y la calidad de sus creaciones. http://danielmerriam.com/ https://www.facebook.com/DANIELMERRIAM/ http://www.bubblestreetgallery.com/artists/daniel-merriam «Nací en York Harbor, un pequeño pueblo de pescadores con una próspera escena turística veraniega. La zona atrae a decenas de artistas debido a sus cualidades rústicas y un encanto de viejo mundo. Teníamos mucha exposición al arte en la región. De hecho, las expectativas artísticas eran bastante altas debido a las prósperas artes locales y su formación académica. De niño vi a algunos de los mejores ejemplos de arte moderno original de nuestro tiempo. Me sorprendieron tanto que me vi obligado a dominar las habilidades de arte, incluso cuando aún era un niño. Maine también es bastante rural, por lo que los paseos por los bosques eran naturales para mí. Podía caminar millas sólo, sin una brújula o un camino a seguir. Pero además de lo mucho que sabía de la tierra, también era un maestro de las aguas. Entre la navegación, la pesca y el buceo, pasé tanto tiempo en el agua como fuera. Mi mundo estaba hecho de la crudeza de la realidad de la naturaleza y los tratamientos de fantasía de mi percepción. Mi conexión con la naturaleza, sin duda, está arraigada en las formas y patrones dentro de mi arte. Tanto mi familia como nuestra comunidad poseían una calidad caprichosa que permanece en mi arte hasta el día de hoy. Podría decir que mi infancia es lo que más ha inspirado mi arte.» Todas las imágenes y/o vídeos que se muestran corresponden al artista o artistas referenciados. Su exposición en este blog pretende ser un homenaje y una contribución a la difusión de obras dignas de reconocimiento cultural, sin ninguna merma a los derechos que correspondan a sus legítimos propietarios. En ningún caso hay en este blog interés económico directo ni indirecto. Javier Nebot
The word "escapism" can have a negative meaning, suggesting that escapists are unhappy and unable to connect with the world around them. It sounds like a surreal concept, but in our every day lives, on social media for example, we find ways to divert from reality. Daniel Merriam's recent exhibition at AFA Gallery challenges the notion that escapism is fundamentally negative. "It's not a sin, it's not a crime, it's not a disease... You think of escapism as being denial. So a little bit of escapism is considered good - too much is not," he shares. "Now You See Me: The Art of Escapism" is Merriam's reflection on this idea.
Daniel Merriam was born in New York in a big family. He mainly paints with acrylic and watercolors. His works are very complex and insightful, one can practically spend hours on studying these work…
A body of artwork that was built on a foundation of inspiration, talent and a lot of hard work. American artist Daniel Merriam, has had a very full life, if you get the chance, have a look at his site and his story. I am usually captivated by the art of an artist, but very rarely by the stories they share, if any at all. There aren't a lot of artists that are comfortable sharing that much with others. You usually end up getting a list of achievements to try and distract from their personal life, or you have other people describing the artist and facets of their life. Merriam goes into fantastic and interesting detail, about his life, describing the highs and the lows, explaining how he is grateful for all he has learnt from both. I am not saying that artists that don't want to share are doing something wrong, but that this was a very pleasant surprise and a wonderful read. The beauty of this post is that the art is just as good and interesting, so get comfortable and enjoy this banquet of surrealism and prepare for the feast. The Dragon. Press the Image to Enlarge it. High Tide. Press the Image to Enlarge it. Meeting of the Minds. Press the Image to Enlarge it. Balancing Act. Press the Image to Enlarge it. A Fine Line. Press the Image to Enlarge it. Ahead of His Time. Press the Image to Enlarge it. Drifting Away. Press the Image to Enlarge it. Places to go. Press the Image to Enlarge it. Counting the Minutes. Press the Image to Enlarge it. Changing Views. Press the Image to Enlarge it. Grand Junction. Press the Image to Enlarge it. Honey Jar. Press the Image to Enlarge it. The Strategist. Press the Image to Enlarge it.
“This whole creation is essentially subjective, and the dream is the theater where the dreamer is at once: scene, actor, prompter, stage manager, author, audience, and critic.” CARL JUNG If Hieronymus Bosch took the blue pill instead and sat down to a mad hatters tea party with Marie Antoinette, a hookah-smoking Caterpillar & a couple of unicorns you may just open the curtain into Daniel Merriam's theatre fantastic. A Master American Surrealist painter, his worlds speak to those of us who adored the movie The Labyrinth and found ourselves asking, Why the hell wouldn't she stay with the Goblin King? It's firmly the territory of a child's bubblegum mind. With that nostaligic whisper of storyteller musings, his works refreshingly bring us back to those times before childhood characters were pimped out as playing cards, blockbuster
If Daniel Merriam's watercolors were books, they would be fairytales once upon a time in a far away European dreamland. The painter, who is currently exhibiting at AFA Gallery (covered here), compares his process to a writer's. In our recent interview, Merriam told us about the influence of 17th and 18th century Baroque architecture on his works which he draws from memory. Although imaginary, his elaborate structures must be believable in their world, and he builds them out carefully as a point of reference. In this sense, one could also call him an architect.
Daniel Merriam was born in New York in a big family. He mainly paints with acrylic and watercolors. His works are very complex and insightful, one can practically spend hours on studying these work…
“This whole creation is essentially subjective, and the dream is the theater where the dreamer is at once: scene, actor, prompter, stage manager, author, audience, and critic.” CARL JUNG If Hieronymus Bosch took the blue pill instead and sat down to a mad hatters tea party with Marie Antoinette, a hookah-smoking Caterpillar & a couple of unicorns you may just open the curtain into Daniel Merriam's theatre fantastic. A Master American Surrealist painter, his worlds speak to those of us who adored the movie The Labyrinth and found ourselves asking, Why the hell wouldn't she stay with the Goblin King? It's firmly the territory of a child's bubblegum mind. With that nostaligic whisper of storyteller musings, his works refreshingly bring us back to those times before childhood characters were pimped out as playing cards, blockbuster
The word "escapism" can have a negative meaning, suggesting that escapists are unhappy and unable to connect with the world around them. It sounds like a surreal concept, but in our every day lives, on social media for example, we find ways to divert from reality. Daniel Merriam's recent exhibition at AFA Gallery challenges the notion that escapism is fundamentally negative. "It's not a sin, it's not a crime, it's not a disease... You think of escapism as being denial. So a little bit of escapism is considered good - too much is not," he shares. "Now You See Me: The Art of Escapism" is Merriam's reflection on this idea.
