Howard Friedland OPA
Howard Friedland was born in Bronx, New York; lived in Miami Florida, Albuquerque and Taos New Mexico and now resides in Bozeman, Montana with his wife artist Susan Blackwood. He studied fine art and commercial art at New York’s High School of Music and Art. He went to college at The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Art and Science in the department of Art and Architecture in New York.
Howard has studied oil painting with Ned Jacob, Michael J. Lynch, Mark Daley, Laura Robb, William Schultz, Robert Kuester, Charles Reed, Carolyn Anderson, Mitch Billis, Scott Christensen, Matt Smith and Joshua Clare. Oil Painters of America inducted Howard as a Signature Member into their organization in 2003. He recently was the winner of the Second Place and the Artist's Choice Awards at the American Impressionist Society National Show.
Friedland won First Place in the Oil Painters of America 2014 Fall Online Showcase Signature Member Division.
In 2008 Friedland was honored to receive the coveted National Award of Excellence "Best of Show" First Place at the 17th annual Oil Painters of America National Exhibition. He has also received the Award for Best painting by a Signature member from that prestigious organization.
Howard has also been awarded the Best Landscape medal at the "Icons of the West" show at the Dana Gallery in Missoula Montana.
He and his wife and their studio in Bozeman Montana have been featured in numerous art magazine articles including the June/July 2015 issue of Plein Air Magazine. Art of the West Magazine and American Artist Studio Edition.
Howard has painted, taught and exhibited extensively in numerous states in the U.S. as well as Mexico, France, Italy, England, Spain, Portugal, Croatia and China. Friedland’s work is featured in many private and corporate collections around the world including museums in China. Howard was invited to join renown Chinese American artist Zhiwei Tu and several prominent American and Chinese master painters to paint and exhibit large plein air paintings created in China in 2011 and 2014.
He has a teaching DVD, "Painting the Landscape Loosely but Accurately" released this year from Bella Muse Productions. A list of awards and accolades can be provided by emailing Howard Friedland
Artist Statement
"The challenge for me is always to see the world with fresh eyes and respond spontaneously to the beauty before me. It's possible to lose the impact of my initial vision out of doors due to the continually changing light. For this reason I strive to capture as quickly and accurately as possible the visual sensations that I have of the subject. I study the color relationships and try to note them as best as I can. Back at my studio I use these "on the spot" studies for larger paintings. I also take some photos for additional information, however I'm careful not to copy the photograph (too much information could dilute my first impression). Therefore, I also have to rely on my memory to recall the mood that I wanted to express." "Some painters prefer to render a picture tightly to a literal level of finish. However I prefer to paint only enough for the viewer to get a clear vision of what the subject is and suggest the rest. When the painting is viewed close up you can see the many colorful brush strokes, as you step further away the brush strokes disappear and your eye pulls the whole painting together. That is what the magic of painting is about for me. This allows the viewers to use his or her own imagination and participate in the painting".