John Baker
At the age of five I watched with great interest and amazement as my brother created wonderful drawings. This was a magical process, to virtually make something from nothing. The
birth of a ?want? and desire to draw occurred right there. In fact, everything related to an artist?s work was so interesting to me.
My grade school teachers enrolled me in drawing classes at the Art Institute of Chicago. My family didn?t have the resources available to help with an art education, so I was very
fortunate to receive training from one of the teachers at the Art Institute who treated me as a fellow artist. I attended classes there through my High School years, and during that
time, I experienced the wonder of French impressionist painting when I saw, up close, the ?Angelus?, by Jean-Francois Millet on loan from the Louvre. It was a transforming experience.
I was born and raised in Chicago and love its people, its architecture, the feel of its streets and I portray those street scenes in French Post Impressionist style.
Currently, I am a member of the Elmhurst Artists Guild and a past member of the Chicago Artists Coalition. I exhibited my work at the Merchandise Mart and I am a resident artist at
the Third Friday Gallery in Oak Park, IL. Many of my paintings are in private collections in the US and abroad.
I continue to learn and grow as an artist and I learned a great deal about watercolor and oil from Layne Jackson, a respected Chicago artist. I attended her watercolor and oil
painting classes at the Latin School of Chicago, and I was fortunate to have found such a wonderful teacher.
John Baker