the artists

James Steen

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artist's biography

Grounded in nature, Steen's work has become more abstract in nature the past couple of years. As an adjunct to a career in graphic design, he started painting landscapes about a year after founding the Bucks Gallery of Fine Art. "Having moved somewhat serrendipitously to Phillips Mill next door to the William Lalthrop estate, it only seemed natural to begin this way. I used to ride my bike starting in Lambertville and do the loop over the Stockton Bridge and back down the PA side. I was always interested in where this little stone lane that veered off the main road ended up, so one day I pulled in and saw this house for sale. I walked into the backyard and stood there for awhile soaking in the surroundings thinking what a beautiful, peaceful spot. It wasn't long before two elderly sisters, Nora and Jill, and their black lab Daisy cozied up. I later learned that the sisters were the granddaughters of the great landscape artist William Lathrop, the founder of the New Hope impressionist school at the turn of the century. I loved the stories about how Lathrop, Edward Redfield, and Morgan Colt would paint plein aire and I particualrly liked the snow scenes, so one day after a freshly, fallen snow I carted an easel down the towpath out front. What an exhillerating feeling. Then my feet got cold. So I took that vision in my head indoors. Well, at that point the colors got warmer which was ok by me as I wanted to do something different anyway." And that eventually evolved again into the large abstract impressionist works he paints today.