Fran Failla

Artist Statement

I have been painting and creating art for over 50 years. It is and has always been an integral part of my life. I paint because I love it! I love the smell of oil paints and the rich, creamy way that the paint glides across a smooth canvas. I love to see the images emerge from the paint and form a visual reality for the viewer.
My art is about communicating Life, the simplicity and beauty of it. That is something that cannot be approximated with words alone. There is and can be a visual aesthetic that, by its very nature, accompanies the communication. The visual aesthetic can elevate the communication beyond words.
I am fascinated by the seemingly mundane parts of life. A piece of fruit, an old ceramic pot and a flower that's past its prime are all inherently beautiful to me. It is my mission, as a visual artist, to make that beauty visible to others and to do it in a meaningful and abundantly aesthetic way.
My art is real. It is immediately relatable. There are sometimes metaphors or messages, or graphic elements connected to the work. That adds to the fun. But overall, it is Life as we all know and experience it, just made more beautiful with the stroke of a paintbrush.

Biography

In seventh grade, my art teacher liked to invent challenges for her students. I was given the challenge to copy a painting from a well-known historical master artist. I chose a still life painting by Paul Cezanne and produced, without prior training, an almost exact duplicate of his work. I still have that painting today. That singular action sparked a boundless journey for me into creating art. That journey still continues some fifty years later.
I love classical oil painting, specializing in representational still life. I am inspired by the Impressionists, most especially Cezanne. Of the great masters, I adore Rembrandt and Caravaggio. For many years, I attended the renowned Art Students League in Manhattan, studying under several modern-day classical masters. While at the League, I also exhibited my art and had the honor of winning the coveted "Red Dot" award on more than one occasion, for both painting and drawing.
About seven years ago, I made the move from my home in New York City to the Tampa Bay area. I gravitated to the Dunedin Fine Arts Center to continue expanding as an artist and have continued to exhibit my work in both group and solo exhibitions. This year I was also honored to receive the prestigious Creative Pinellas Emerging Artist grant, through the National Endowment for the Arts.

Exhibition History (CV)