David J. Holland
Artist Bio
Born in Lawton in 1959 into an Army family, David traveled extensively as a child, living on bases in Oklahoma, Kansas, Japan, Idaho, Maryland and Arkansas before his family permanently settled in Oklahoma City in 1977. His lifelong interest in creating art began at an early age and during his career he’s created multiple series of artworks. He’s known best for using lush color and heightened contrast to paint dramatic cloudscapes in his own realistic style.
The Oklahoma Museum of Art has played a significant role twice in his development as an artist. First, in 1983 while a junior at Oklahoma City University, two of his works - a black and white pencil drawing of the interior of a pioneer cabin and a watercolor of an ancient bristlecone pine - juried into the member’s annual exhibition. And then in 1995 a large format pencil drawing of the refection of downtown OKC in the mirrored columns in front of the newly built Leadership Square won Best of Show at an exhibition hosted by the downtown OMA.
Due to a work accident in 1983, David lost sight in his left eye and had to learn to “re-see” things in a new 2-dimensional world. He graduated in 1984 from OCU with a BA degree in art.
In 2006, an OVAC retreat gave him the tools and the confidence to take the leap of faith to pursue his long time goal of becoming a full-time artist. Finally in 2012, he began devoting all his time to painting. His current work features dramatic thunderstorm landscapes expressed with oil on canvas or panel.
Recent exhibitions include the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, the Governor’s Gallery, Mainsite Contemporary, Science Museum Oklahoma, the National Weather Center, the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, and the Myriad Botanical Gardens.
Artist Work
Title: The Behavior of Air
Category: Painting
Genre: Oil on Canvas
Description: This oil painting shows the drama of Oklahoma's skies. Active thunderstorms are developing around an open field, with the newest and most vigorous storm going up, featured in the center of the painting.
Title: When Souls Take Flight
Category: Painting
Genre: Oil on Canvas
Description: This paining shows the drama of late evening storms. This is just before sunset when the illumination is from the side and reveals all the dimensional depth of the storm. The colors of clouds this time of evening are beautiful to paint because they reflect the colors of the sunset and are contrasted and offset by the cool shadows in blues and purples that create a dynamic three-dimensional effect.
Title: A Day in the Land of Giants
Category: Painting
Genre: Oil on Canvas
Description: This oil paintings shows the power and majesty of a towering thunderstorm over the Cimarron River.
Location
73107