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Doug Simon’s kinetic brushstrokes and lush colors have been 46 years in the making. Doug’s art career began in 1975 during his freshman year at King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. After receiving his bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts he moved to Philadelphia where he attended the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, America’s oldest art school. He was awarded full tuition scholarships and private studio space as he continued to develop his unique style. During the last 2 years at the Academy, Doug studied Art History at The Barnes Foundation, a world renowned private collection of some of the greatest works of Renoir, Cézanne, Matisse, Picasso and countless other Post-Impressionist Artists.

During summer breaks he sold his works at art festivals and traveled to the western states. Inspired by the light and colors of the west, his palette changed and his application of paint became more direct. He was most taken with the San Francisco Bay area, where he felt the light was extremely conducive for impressionist painting. Doug decided to move to California in 1986.

Influenced by Paul Gaugin’s philosophy “Do not copy nature too much. Art is an abstraction,” Doug is inspired by the light and colors of the landscape of nature and channels the terrains’ flowing abstract imagery into his plein air landscape paintings. He enjoys working very quickly, sometimes on location, gradually building layers of color and texture to mimic nature. Some paintings are later finished in the studio as not to contaminate the fresh qualities achieved on location.” By providing a fresh visual syntax of the natural terrain, his compositions are invested with imagery reminiscent of nature and epitomize the quest to capture the complex, fleeting patterns of nature on canvas. Not only does he offer a new perspective on nature, but the artist also energizes one’s visual perspective by illustrating a new dimension of the natural world, allowing the audience to contemplate our own visual perception of nature.

Art dealers have compared him to the Plein air painters of California during the early part of the 20th century. He has been the director and member of the Plein Air gallery in Benicia, California. He also paints custom indoor and outdoor murals and commissioned works of people, pets, and reproductions of scenic photographs. Today Doug is an accomplished international artist who continues to develop his style painting in various locations throughout California as well as utilizing aerial photography and Google Earth to paint the landscape from above. His art has been in shows in Florence, Mira, and Verona Italy, San Francisco and New York City. He has been published in Effetto Arte, NY Arts Magazine, New Art International, & Art International Contemporary Magazine.