About | ursprungstudios

About Gene Ursprung

My life experiences began on a farm in Prairietown, Illinois. During my grade school and high school years, I spent the summers helping my dad and other farmers plant, harvest, and bale hay. This is where I learned to love the beauty of nature. After high school I entered SIUE. I also attended Plymouth State University in Plymouth, New Hampshire. My years of teaching in the Alton Public Schools and Lewis and Clark Community College led to my name being listed in Who's Who of American Education, 8th. 9th. and 10th. Edition.

I generally set a time limit to complete my watercolor paintings. This time limit makes me paint quickly, which prevents overpainting and also allows me to paint more freely. The pencil, pen and ink drawing over water color, drawing on photos with prisma colored pencils, and taking photos are all mediums I enjoy using for my work.

Sometimes a watercolor or drawing may remain in a drawer or cabinet for days or years. As time passes and I look at the work, I think to myself, "Hey, this has possiblities," and I will then work on it again or trash it.

I have been very fortunate to work and teach in the art arena. Attending workshops in Maine with Eliot O'Hara and Edgar Whitney were rewarding experiences. Participating in a workshop in Saugatuck, Michigan and listening to Harold Gregor discuss the history of art has also been an inspiration for my work.

The landscape around Alton, the Illinois and the Mississippi Rivers, the farm communities and historical areas are inspirational subjects for my paintings. Alton has much history along with interesting architecture in the GRAND OLD HOUSES and the smaller STONE HOMES from the eighteen hundreds. I am trying to capture the character of the Alton vicinity before many of the areas are destroyed. Times are changing and I want to pay tribute to the folks that were here before we arrived and the the builders that constructed those well built homes.

I remember a comment made by my SIUE art instructor. She said "There is enough subject matter and beauty in this area, why go to Maine?" Interesting...Do you think she was correct?

Gene Ursprung