Morgan Weistling is nationally recognized as one of America’s top contemporary painters today. A successful illustrator in the Hollywood movie industry for fourteen years, Weistling made a transition to the world of fine art in 1998 that has been meteoric in so small sense of the word.
His earliest influence was his artist father on whose lap Morgan sat and sketched at just nineteen months of age. At the age of 15, he began his serious art training in the Los Angeles area at Brandes Art Institute, run by Fred Fixler. Fixler was train classically by famed muralist , Frank Reilly. Under Fixler’s tutelage, Weistling learned to paint by studying how light and tone tell the story of form.
Western American Painting
Interviewed for an article in “Art of the West” magazine, Weistling recalls, “Fixler used classical methods and still taught the rigorous approach. Great draftsmanship is the root of all great art. That’s how he trained me. Other major influences in Morgan’s work include John Singer Sargent, Anders Zorn, Nicolai Fechin, Joaquin Sorolla, and illustrators of the Golden Age of Illustration .
Weistling was recruited out of art school by the top advertising agency in Hollywood , Bacon Reneric Design, at the age of 19. For 14 years he created movie posters with every major studio in the entertainment business. Morgan thrived under the challenges presented to him in the highly stressed poster industry but was looking forward to a time when he could stretch himself more artistically.
After leaving illustration, Morgan soon became known nationally for his exquisite oil paintings that showcase his well honed drawing ability and his skilled control over values, edges and light. He is able to draw upon his many years as a illustrator to create masterful compositions with multiple figures as well as single figure settings.
Most often, his subjects are period pieces, evoking a more gentle, gracious time. He captures the mood and atmosphere of the past and his attention to the historical aspects of his subjects comes from his desire to portray the truth and beauty of America’s pioneering spirit. His paintings have a deep sense of history to them due to the his research and authentic costumes that he has specially made for him.
